Love, Rosie / Lionsgate

3 Movies To Watch If You’re Secretly In Love With Your Best Friend

These are the romantic comedies all about pining for the one who sees you as "just a friend." (And where to watch them.)

By

We’ve all been there. You’re supposed to be “just friends,” yet you can’t help but imagine the day when you and your bestie can be together for real.

The problem is that, when you want to watch a movie about love, the stories are rarely like your own. They’re about a pair having a classic meet-cute where they drop a pile of books and charmingly bump heads on their way back up. What about the stories of people quietly pining over someone they’ve know for their whole lives? That’s where these rom com gems come in. These underrated romantic comedies show what can happen when you love your best friend–and you get your happy ending together.

Secret Admirer (1985)

Orion Pictures

Toni is best friends with Michael and has gotten very good at hiding her true feelings, but it’s the last day of school and she finally wants to make a move. She writes him a letter confessing her feelings, but doesn’t sign it. That secret admirer letter ends up floating through the community with hilarious consequences–including into the hands of Michael’s crush Deborah Anne. Watch Secret Admirer on MGM+.

Some Kind Of Wonderful (1987)

Paramount Pictures

This quintessential friends-to-lovers rom com from the 80s finds Watts trying to help her best friend Keith get with the pretty popular girl, even though Watts herself has been madly in love with him for years. If you need a lesson in how to do this trope right, watch the “kissing practice” scene. And then watch it again just for fun. Watch Some Kind of Wonderful on Amazon Video.

Love, Rosie (2015)

Lionsgate

Even when two best friends fall in love with each other right away, it can still take years for their hearts to catch up, which is what happens in Love, Rosie. Rosie and Alex have been best friends since they were kids, but life just keeps getting in the way of their very real attraction. Watch Love, Rosie on Paramount+.