The upcoming sex comedy movie One Night Only has critics wildly split on Rotten Tomatoes. The film stars Monica Barbaro (Top Gun: Maverick) and Callum Turner (Masters of the Air) in lead roles.
Directed by Will Gluck, the romantic sex comedy follows a strange plot where single people are legally allowed to have sex on just the one night of the year.
The film’s cast also features former Stranger Things star Maya Hawke. Other notable names include Julia Fox, King Princess, Ziwe Fumudoh, and Ben Marshall. Ahead of its theatrical debut this Friday, One Night Only seems to have polarized critics.
What are critics saying about One Night Only?
At the time of this article’s publication, One Night Only holds a 53% Tomatometer score, based on 34 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. It suggests the sex comedy is neither passable nor great, but lies somewhere in the middle.
One Night Only has critics divided, with some praising it and others not. Speaking of positive reactions, Joey Morona of Cleveland Plain Dealer wrote, “The fact that director Will Gluck arrives at a conclusion that’s sentimental, optimistic and only a little schmaltzy is a neat trick given the film’s contrived, almost dystopian premise.”
Nina Starner of Slashfilm called the romantic sex comedy “an absolute delight.” Tyler Taing of Discussing Film admired the movie, saying that it’s “designed to be watched with a group of friends, followed by an in-depth discussion of the logistical problems, politics, and hypothetical scenarios that the sex-purge universe sparks to mind. In other words, it’s a surprisingly fun time!”
On the other hand, some critics are totally disappointed after watching the sex comedy. Odie Henderson of The Boston Globe wrote, “Its ideas are outdated and, for a movie about casual sex, it’s shockingly puritanical. Even worse, its old-fashioned ideas about romance and sex in relationships would make a Doris Day movie look like Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.”
Peter Sobczynski of Auteurist Class wrote that the lead pair’s chemistry doesn’t evoke any feeling and “they deliver their banter as professionally as possible but they never come across as a plausible pairing.”
Aaron Neuwrith of We Live Entertainment wrote, “the film sidesteps both large and small implications of this world in favor of a fairly rote story involving two very attractive people who would never be caught in the dilemma this film puts them in.”
Universal Pictures’ One Night Only hits theaters on August 7, 2026.
Originally reported by Mintu Kumar Tomar on ComingSoon.
