Dark Rom-Com Moments That Came Out Of Nowhere And Completely Surprised Everyone

You never expect it to get THAT dark.

Ayoub

• Published in Film & TV
• July 26, 2022

Watching romantic comedies is always unpredictable because you never know what you are going to get exposed to. You think you signed up for a very specific kind of experience, but you end up seeing some really dark stuff out of nowhere.

We all love a happy ending, but sometimes sacrifices have to be made to finally deliver that highly anticipated happy ending. It's just how things are.

It's all part of the experience since if you know all there is to know about a movie before watching it, why even bother watching it? The entire appeal of the experience is to get slightly traumatized by some unpredictable events you would have never expected. Unless they take it way too far.

You never expect rom-coms to have dark twists because they usually don't include any. But once you get hit with a dark twist you usually don't know how to react because that is just not what you signed up for.

Here are a few unexpectedly dark rom-com moments that caught the BuzzFeed Community off guard. Some of them are pretty dark and shook unsuspecting audiences who totally did not see it coming.

1. "When Ben had sex with his wife while his girlfriend was hidden in the closet in He's Just Not That Into You."

"I was really shocked when Ben stuffed his girlfriend into the closet in his office and she was forced to listen to him and his wife having sex."

—brittanied2

The scene is age-restricted on Youtube, but you can watch it by clicking on "Watch on YouTube"

2. "The timeline in Sliding Doors when Helen died."

"She and James went through some major drama, but she'd really gotten her life together. She owned her own business, found personal success, then BAM! After resolving said drama, she's hit by a van. The movie ends on a really positive note, but that death scene makes me cry every goddamn time."

—thedryad

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

3. "The moment Karen discovered her husband's affair in Love Actually."

"When Karen found out about her husband's affair, I sobbed for hours — it hit me like a punch in the gut, because things like that actually happen. Absolutely heartbreaking."

—josiej4e0db2755

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

4. "The "who deserves the last brownie" scene in Notting Hill."

"Things went from 0 to 100 way faster than I expected."

—Hanifah Rahman

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

5. "When Nicki found Erin's suicide note in What Women Want."

"I was shocked by how dark Erin's story was about her being suicidal. In a way, it made it more real and it didn't feel out of place. Shocking, but I like how it was incorporated into the storyline."

—pwincessrasia

"When Nick noticed that Erin hadn’t shown up for work, and rushed to her apartment because he was afraid she was going to hurt herself, and found the note she left. Luckily, he got to her before she could, but that was a surprisingly dark moment."

—Shelby Shinkle

6. "When Tim went back in time to say goodbye to his dead dad in About Time."

"When the dad dies in About Time and Tim goes back to relive one last day with him because he can't go back anymore. It's so heartbreaking."

—hannahjayehw

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

7. "Gareth's sudden death in Four Weddings and a Funeral."

"When Gareth died in Four Weddings and a Funeral. We were all enjoying the wedding merriment, and then he has a heart attack out of the blue! His funeral scene was very moving; Matthew reading the poem gets me every time too."

—rachelg49b663c96

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

8. "When Vivian was almost sexually assaulted in Pretty Woman."

"In Pretty Woman when Edward's lawyer attempted to rape Vivian. I knew the guy was a creep, but the movie had been pretty lighthearted despite the subject matter, so I was shocked when that scene happened."

—jordans43125d2f3

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

9. "When Olive's fake date forced himself on her in Easy A."

"Olive goes on a date with a guy who turns out to be super creepy, and he just won’t stop trying to kiss her and touch her?! That bit broke my heart and was a little too relatable for I’m guessing a LOT of women who watched that."

—lulac2

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

10. "When Amy's dad died unexpectedly in Trainwreck."

"The whole movie has dark understones, but when Amy finds out her sick father overdosed on his medication and died, it's really sad."

—hotchickennugget

11. "When Jenna realised she ruined her chances with Matty in 13 Going On 30."

"Right at the end when Jenna goes to see Matt on the day he’s getting married to convince him to be with her, and he gives her the dream house he kept for 17 years — it BREAKS MY HEART. My eyes are welling up just thinking about it! The idea that you love someone so much, but you can’t be with them because you’ve made your choices, just really stuck with me."

—ellkay55

"When Jenna finally realises what a dick she was when she was 13, and falls head over heels for Matt. I CRY MY EYES OUT."

—slaterisobel

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

12. "The dark origins of the curse in Penelope."

"The story of the servant girl killing herself was heartbreaking. That whole movie really had some dark moments."

—nakitaannl

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

13. "When it was revealed that Meryl cheated on Paul in Did You Hear About the Morgans?"

"It was a really funny and uplifting movie, but when Meryl revealed she had cheated on Paul during their break, I was devastated. Paul had been so funny up until that point, and his sadness was so uncharacteristic that it was painful to watch."

—limegirl99

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

14. "The scene in To All the Boys I've Loved Before when Lara Jean opened up about losing her mum."

"Lara Jean and her dad talking in the diner about her dead mom gutted me a little bit. I was not expecting that from a high school rom-com."

—soaringlauren

15. "When Emma died suddenly at the end of One Day."

"Anne Hathaway’s character finally finds happiness, only to be hit by a bus while riding her bike...traumatised."

—alyj4106020fb

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

16. "The scene where Elle was propositioned by her professor in Legally Blonde."

"He behaves so inappropriately, and nothing seems to happen to him other than getting dropped from a case. I was hoping it would show him being fired or confronted by the other professor."

—leannetillyk

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

17. "When Nick's mum told Rachel she wasn't good enough for him in Crazy Rich Asians."

"The scene where Nick's mom tells Rachel about the emerald ring and how she'll never be good enough. Horrible."

—hotchickennugget

"There's also the scene when Rachel's mother explains to Rachel that her husband and his family were abusive to her, and when she had an affair with her best friend and got pregnant and gave birth to Rachel, her husband's family was upset by this and tried to hurt Rachel as a baby. Dark, right?"

—nerdyintrovert6562

Here's a video of the scene on YouTube:

Some of these twists ended up being quite dark and totally unexpected. But those moments made them quite unique in a way, despite the traumatizing stuff that came out of nowhere and took everyone off guard.

If you liked this list, make sure to check out similar content on our platform!

Ayoub