Reminders of Him
“Reminders of Him has a positive supporting role for Monika Myers, a Canadian model with Down syndrome who makes her film debut in Colleen Hoover’s latest adaptation.”
Title: Reminders of Him (2026)
Director: Vanessa Caswill 👩🏼🏴
Writer: Screenplay by Lauren Levine 👩🏼 and Colleen Hoover 👩🏼🇺🇸 based on the novel by Colleen Hoover 👩🏼🇺🇸
Reviewed by Li 👩🏻🇺🇸
Technical: 1.75/5
Following on the heels of It Ends With Us (2024) and Regretting You (2025), bestselling novelist Colleen Hoover has released her latest film adaptation, Reminders of Him, helmed by director Vanessa Caswill. While the production values feel nice, and the cinematography is pretty enough to look at, the writing asks too much of its audience: Plot turns and emotional story arcs make no logical sense. But because there’s a sweeping romance involved, we’re expected to go along for the ride.
Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe), fresh from a prison stint, returns home and promptly falls in love with her dead ex’s best friend, Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers). Meanwhile, Kenna yearns to be reunited with her now-5-year-old daughter, Diem (Zoe Kosovic), who’s being kept from her by Diem’s paternal grandparents … who live across the street from Ledger, who has become Diem’s stand-in father. This entangled setup unfurls without any surprises, and even though I’m all for tropey romances when they’re done right, Reminders of Him doesn’t stick the landing. Tissue-paper-thin backstories, confusing character motivations, and irresponsible behavior stymie the dramatic tension at every turn. When you’re throwing your hands up in the air, asking, “What are you doing??” all movie long, that’s not a great experience.
At its worst, Reminders of Him kicks around Kenna’s poor daughter like a MacGuffin. Everyone wants a piece of Diem—whether it’s Kenna, Ledger, or Diem’s grandparents, Grace (Lauren Graham) and Patrick (Bradley Whitford). The adults surrounding this little girl fight like inane ducks, screaming and stalking and punching and hiding from one another, complete with shaky handheld cameras to emphasize the direness of their situations. But none, mother included, act in the girl’s best interests. If Kenna were truly caring, she wouldn’t try to approach Diem without first contacting her guardians, Grace and Patrick, to see if they could set up a meeting. If Patrick were such a loving grandfather, he wouldn’t run out into the front lawn to sucker-punch Diem’s beloved father figure, Ledger, as Diem confusedly watches on.
Ultimately, this entire movie could have been avoided if its main characters just operated like actual human beings. But that wouldn’t be very dramatic, now, would it?
Gender: 4/5
Does it pass the Bechdel Test? YES
Behind the camera, it’s positive that women have written and directed the film—a departure from Hoover’s last two adaptations, both directed by men. On screen, the female relationships serve as the film’s biggest strength. Kenna’s bond with her daughter might not be the most fleshed out, but it’s impactful, and one of the film’s rare moments of earned emotionality takes place when Kenna reconciles with Grace, and they hug. Still, the title says it all—male love interests drive the narrative, whether it’s Kenna’s ex or her new romance with Ledger.
Race: 2.5/5
Reminders of Him is set in Laramie, Wyoming, which was 78% white in 2024. More than 1 in 10 Laramie residents were also Hispanic, though we don’t meet any of them in this film.
On screen, the main love interest, Ledger, is played by Withers, who’s biracial African American and English. Ledger is almost tokenized, since we never meet his family members, and he falls into the cliché of being a Black athlete (a football player for the Denver Broncos). Luckily, another Black character works at his bar—Roman (Nicholas Duvernay)—who gets several laugh lines and plays the positive, if two-dimensional, role of a supportive friend with ease.
Minor characters of color also briefly appear in crowd scenes. But the film uses a colorblind lens, never pausing to incorporate racial identities in any meaningful way, which makes the representation shallow.
Bonus for Disability: +0.50
There’s a positive supporting role for Monika Myers, a Canadian model with Down syndrome who makes her film debut in Reminders of Him as Kenna’s friend Lady Diana. Myers has only a handful of scenes, but she’s portrayed as independent—she works at a grocery store—and has joyful scenes, as well as a sharp recurring gag in which she pointedly calls Ledger a jerk. In my theater audience, these “jerk” punchlines got the biggest laughs throughout the movie, and the jokes were never at her expense.
Mediaversity Grade: C 2.92/5
Reminders of Him makes no narrative or emotional sense, and it isn’t notably inclusive. But it does hail from an all-female filmmaking team, showcases several female relationships, and portrays Lady Diana’s character with Down syndrome warmly. If you’re a Hoover fan and enjoyed her previous film adaptations, Reminders of Him will probably scratch that itch for you.
Like Reminders of Him? Try these other titles with interwoven themes of tragedy and love.
Five Feet Apart (2019)
A Star is Born (2018)
Moonlight (2016)