Stephanie Hsu "Fucked Up" the Rom-Com Trope

Meet-cutes, klutzy heroines, and witty repartee might be tired rom-com tropes, but at some point in the distant past, they must've resembled an idealized version of the real thing, right? Perhaps at some point in the '90s, but today, that neat, linear path to happily ever after couldn't be further from the truth.

Single people used to agonize over voicemails and IRL run-ins; now they Google more complicated questions like, "What is limerence, and do I have it?" or "Is breadcrumbing a thing?" Over on TikTok, #womeninmalefields find catharsis by publicly dragging their dates' bad behavior. Solutions, both retro and regressive, to the crises of swipe culture proliferate on both sides of the political aisle. Everyone agrees that, when it comes to dating in 2024, the bar is in hell—and pop culture hasn't quite caught up.

"Our generation grew up in the heyday of rom-coms," Stephanie Hsu tells me during a conversation about her latest project, which puts a sick twist on the rom-com cliché. "And that's just simply not what most people experience." The Oscar nominee's new Peacock show, Laid (streaming now), aims to capture the spirit of romance in the Hinge era. Naturally, the plot follows a messy 30-something whose exes are mysteriously dropping dead—a concept that feels especially on-brand during America's flirtation with the 4B movement.

In the "dark rom-com," Hsu, 34, plays event planner Ruby as she confronts her unraveling love life with the help of her cheerfully macabre bestie (Zosia Mamet) who worships Amanda Knox. With nothing but a true-crime obsession and a dream, they warn Ruby's former lovers of their impending doom and airdrop a deranged "murder board" (basically, an exhaustive ex-boyfriend diagram made of office supplies) to her entanglements' phones with reckless abandon. There's also a cute guy Ruby's crushing on in the mix.

Laid is dirty fun but also hilariously tragic and occasionally gross, much like the dating market. "The pitch and the hook for it are pretty unhinged and insane," Hsu says of her first meeting about the show. Considering she very quickly signed on, that was part of its charm. "Obviously, it's a very heightened concept, but I do think the questions that Ruby's asking are what a lot of people her age are asking about love and relationships."

The outlandish idea proved so compelling that Hsu also agreed to executive produce the project. This wasn't a mere vanity credit, though; it was an education for the Everything Everywhere All at Once actor. "If I do this, I really want to genuinely," she remembers telling the creators. "I don't just want the credit; I want to learn more about producing."

Between meetings, interviews, and a hastily-eaten dinner ("I reached a state of true delirium," she explains about her busy day while munching on a boiled egg), Hsu video-calls in from L.A. to discuss her new passion project. Read on for more about the delightfully dark new romance Laid.

You describe the show as a “fucked up rom-com.” What does that mean to you?

One thing I really love about Ruby is the fact that she is not a hot mess in all aspects of her life. It's just dating. She has a good job; she's great at it. She just cannot figure out this one thing in her life. Which I do feel like is so many women I know—especially our age—who were taught to be strong, independent women, but then have had no time or no success in being able to find a long-standing relationship. And I literally don't know why that's the case. I feel like I have asked that question for myself at times, for people that I love. And it is a generational mystery. I don't know why. I don't know why! And I do think that the concept of love is now a bit more complicated than it used to be. And so maybe we're all contending with that as well.

Was there anything in particular about Ruby being both hero and villain, selfish, messy, etc., that you related to or were drawn to?

I love playing flawed characters. They're really interesting and fun. One thing that's really amazing about characters that are as messy as Ruby is that the spectrum of what's possible is opened up very, very wide. You're allowed to go to extremes, but you're also afforded these moments of real quietness and what's underneath all that.

There is a little bit of Ruby in all of us, and, hopefully, we don't make the horrible decisions or horrible mistakes that she makes in our show. But unless you are married with kids and have it all figured out—even if you've been in a long-term relationship like [characters] AJ and Zach—there's a part of you that's like: Am I making the right decision? How do you know when you know that this is it? From a personal level, I really relate to her.

I have almost those exact words written down! We all know a Ruby. 

Totally. And maybe she's a little bit more flawed than we would like to admit for ourselves. But what's so awesome about a character like her is that she's just far enough away from you that it makes it possible for you to see yourself in it. Because you're like, "Oh, well, I'm not that bad." There is something cathartic about seeing someone who's that messed up or imperfect.

Did you and the creators reference any rom-coms in the show?

Leesa Evans, our costume designer, liked to say that the arc for Ruby is that at the beginning of the show, all she wants is to be the center of a rom-com. And through the course of the season, with the journey that she takes, she becomes the center of the rom-com without even trying, as fucked up as it is. We wanted to start her from a place that was a little bit more modern and fresh fashion-wise, but we knew during the scene at the altar and the anniversary party for Isaac's parents that she would be full Meg Ryan and Diane Keaton. We wanted her costume journey to arrive at the point where she is that familiar, like, quintessential cardigan-and-a-shirt rom-com look. That was our nod to the rom-com icons we love so much. Also, the crying at the keyboard scene is our version of Diane Keaton in Something's Got to Give.

I loved your dynamic with Zosia Mamet. How did you build up that bestie rapport during filming?

Chemistry is one of those things that is hard to describe. I don't know how we found it. We met each other working on this project together and famously went on a Zoom to meet each other. And apparently, Zosia likes to say that I was wearing overalls and a bandana, and she's like, Oh, I like her. And I entered the Zoom chat in mid-conversation and [the group was] talking about horses because Zosia loves horses. And I, similarly, in my overalls and bandana, was like, Oh, I like her.

We're different people, but we have really similar priorities and loves. I think we work very similarly. We want to do as much homework as possible so that we can show up and completely surrender and play. And it was just so, so special to get to work together in that capacity. And so fun.

You really captured the energy of two girls talking at each other fast.

Well, it's kind of how we talk to our friends. That's such a testament to the writers, too, where they do capture this aspect of female friendship and banter that is very relatable.

Are there any other details that you hope people pick up on?

I think for the re-watchers and pause-and-go watchers, the murder board is something to behold.

I am not going to lie—I screamed a little bit when [Zosia] pulled out the murder board.

It's amazing. And it tracks. It's, like, dramaturgically correct.

So anyone who zooms in will get all the information.

All the yarn and all that... yeah. You can't have something that intricate and not be fact-based. It's a fact-finding mission.

Laid was your first executive producer role. What did you learn from that experience?

The biggest thing I learned from Natch [series producer and director Nahnatchka Khan] that I'll bring with me into my future producorial endeavors is clear decision-making. Sometimes, she had to make some really difficult decisions that were messy, but she is so good at being able to make clear-cut decisions swiftly and with kindness. No waffling, no concern of, Will other people like it if I do this? When she feels it in her gut, she says it, and she follows it.

And that is something I really find impressive and want to continue to cultivate. I don't know if you've seen the Martha Stewart doc. But it's making me think a lot about these boss ladies who are asked to make difficult decisions often. And you should always do it with kindness. But I do think that it's scarier when women are wildly powerful. And that's something I think I'm still getting used to.

What do you want people to feel from this show, walking away from it? 

I want people to have a lot of fun. We've been screening this in movie theaters, and it's so fun to watch with an audience. I would love it if people got together with their loved ones during the holidays and just laughed together, screamed together, and felt shocked together. And if we did the genre justice, it would hopefully inevitably tug at your heartstrings a little bit and make you think about all the loves you could have had, have had, would’ve had, or maybe do have. That's what I love about rom-coms: getting to sad-girl sit in your feels a little bit.

Are there any genres you want to tackle next?

I really want to do a quiet, quiet film. I want to do a really intimate two-person drama, maybe a two-person love story.

I love that for you. Manifesting, it's going to happen.

Yeah, it is!

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