No one loves a good love triangle plot line like Netflix. Girl loves boy and boy loves girl, but girl is also in love with another boy. The Kissing Booth, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and Never Have I Ever are a few examples of Netflix projects that use the infamous love triangle storyline. It is such a cliche trope to add but, it is something that I eat up every time. First, you have the main love interest guy (Noah, Peter Kavinksy, Paxton, Hardin). Usually, this guy is portrayed as the “bad boy” of the two choices. This love interest is also usually a rule breaker. Then, you have the secondary love interest (Marco, John Ambrose, Ben, Trevor). This one is always portrayed as the good boy/rule follower and the more logical choice of the two. I always wonder why these main female characters have such a tough time picking a guy when the choice is pretty obvious.
These movies do an amazing job with making you fall in love with the secondary boyfriend option while the main boyfriend is a complete jerk to the main character. The love triangle plot itself is intriguing because it allows us to be both idealistic and realistic at the same time. For example, Tessa must choose between Hardin who is the more dangerous choice out of the two versus Trevor who is the safer option out of the two guys. Hardin lives on the wild side and can be unpredictable, which is something that Tessa wants but being unpredictable can also have its downsides. Then you have Trevor who has a good head on his shoulders but that can also come across as boring. One of these potential relationships is on the more realistic side whereas the other one is on the ideal/fantasy side.
Not only does adding love triangles into a movie or show give the plot some spice, but it also helps create some buzz and free press for the project. These different love triangles create conflict which ultimately helps create a good movie because no one wants to watch a movie where the characters are happy and have their lives together the entire time. I mean where is the fun in that?