Is ‘No Hard Feelings’ based on a true story?

After taking a small break from acting, Jennifer Lawrence has slowly been making her return to the spotlight with a string of films, the latest being the comedy No Hard Feelings. The adult film is similar in style to comedy films of the early 2000s — think raunchy humor in the vein of a Will Ferrell or Julia Louis-Dreyfus film, coincidentally two of Lawrence’s biggest comedic inspirations — and is a refreshing choice for the naturally funny actress, who usually commits to more serious fare.

Lawrence plays a financially struggling, car-less Uber driver who accepts a strange Craigslist ad posted by a wealthy couple requesting someone to give their awkward 19-year-old son (played by Andrew Barth Feldman) dating experience before he goes to college. The premise feels nostalgic in a way, as these kinds of R-rated films rarely merit a theatrical release in our current movie climate, with studios opting to send films of the like straight to streaming. The wacky plot is certainly creative, but no parents are creating a personal ad on behalf of their sons in real life, right?

A real Craigslist ad inspired the film

When it comes to the stories that inspire film, truth is often stranger than fiction; director Gene Stupnitsky got the idea for what would become No Hard Feelings after producers Marc Provissiero and Naomi Odenkirk sent him a real Craigslist ad posted by parents seeking a woman to date their son. Lawrence and Stupnitsky spoke with Entertainment Weekly during a preview screening of the film at CinemaCon, and both star and director shared their reactions to the real-life personal ad.

“I read it, and I thought, ‘This is wild. Who is the woman that answers this ad,'” Stupnitsky cited as the initial inspiration for the film. After thinking about the kind of person who would answer the role, the director had the perfect person in mind, “‘Oh, that’ll be a great role for my friend Jennifer Lawrence.'” Stupnitsky shared the ad with his close friend Lawrence, who was just as smitten with the idea.

“Gene read the Craigslist ad to me, and I died laughing. I thought it was hilarious, but there wasn’t a script or anything. I just thought he had a funny idea. And then a couple years later, he handed me the funniest script I’ve ever read in my life.”

Jennifer Lawrence

While both director and star stand by their love for the film, early critic reviews are telling a different story; the film has a relatively low 64 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences give it a much more positive 94 percent. You can see the film for yourself when No Hard Feelings hits theaters Friday, June 23.