Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine on their chemistry in May-September rom-com

Rom-com aficionados are up for a bittersweet but heartwarming treat when director Michael Showalter’s May-September romantic film, “The Idea of You”—starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine—begins streaming on Prime Video this Thursday.When we spoke to Anne and Nicholas in a two-on-one chat last week, we were just as thrilled for the chance to speak to them as much as we were for the opportunity to discuss one of the finest movies we’ve seen from a genre where predictability is par for the course. To say the least, we were swept off our feet by the relatability of its initially unlikely tale and the radiant charm of its lead actress.

But don’t take our word for it: Variety calls the movie “an instant classic,” while The Hollywood Reporter describes it as a feel-good romantic comedy that, “as it wiggles in some lessons about self-discovery, bursts with the magnetism of its lead.”

If that weren’t impressive enough, as we write this, “The Idea of You” has so far earned a 94-percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes—a formidable feat for a “formulaic” romantic drama by any measure.

With its auspicious jump from page to screen, “The Idea of You” brings the star-crossed characters of Robinne Lee’s novel to life as it follows the love story of 40-year-old single mother and art gallery curator Solene Marchand (Anne) and 24-year-old Hayes Campbell (“Red, White & Royal Blue,” “Cinderella”).

As if Solene and Hayes’ 16-year age difference doesn’t bring enough complications, Hayes also happens to be the lead singer of August Moon, the most popular boy band on the planet. But love, as they say, knows no age nor circumstance.

Solene crosses paths with Hayes when she grudgingly steps in to chaperone her 16-year-old daughter Izzy’s (Ella Rubin) trip to the Coachella Music Festival after her two-timing ex-husband Daniel bails at the last minute.

While she expected to be entertained by the dazzling, red-hot acts performing onstage, what Solene doesn’t count on are the sparks that fly as soon as she meets the gorgeous but unassuming pop star, who shows her the way to toilet.

When the heady joys of newfound romance settle down, however, Solene must face the repercussions of not just falling for someone much younger, but also for dealing with the burdens of celebrity.

After telling Anne and Nick how much we love the way their film has navigated and easily transcended the conventions of the romance genre, Anne told Inquirer Entertainment what it was about her character and the story that she wanted to bring to life after reading the script for the first time.

“Oh my gosh,” gushed Anne with a big smile. “First of all, thank you for everything you just said. I feel like it’s Christmas! That’s everything that your heart hopes to hear … and everything that someone experiences about a movie that you make with such love and care. To hear that from you means so much, so thank you so much. That was amazing.

“I was really charmed by the script. [When I read it,] I believed in the possibility of this love and I just thought it had some of the things that I think make my favorite romantic comedies so unlikely. But I do see a version of this where it could happen if everything comes together just right. And I thought, ‘This could be a wonderful, wonderful story to tell.’”

Believing in the possibilityAnne did acknowledge the possible perils of making a larger-than-life story like this.

“Hopefully, nobody feels the risk involved [in pursuing this project while watching]. But from the outside, it’s really difficult to make love stories because it’s so hard to believe in them, especially nowadays when the world is so heavy. We don’t live in a very romantic place these days. So it makes your reaction to the film much more significant because it did feel like a tightrope walk while we were doing ‘The Idea of You.’”

Turning to Nicholas, we asked the handsome 27-year-old British actor if he didn’t find it a little intimidating to share some very emotionally vulnerable—and even steamy—moments with his Oscar-winning leading lady (“Les Miserables”) during the shoot. Or was their potent chemistry already there by the time the cameras started rolling?

“I think the chemistry was already there,” Nicholas asserted. “I mean, Annie’s immensely talented and I’ve always been a fan of her work. But immediately going into our chemistry test before I was cast, I got an insight into the humanity and openness of this person and how we just connected in such a palpable way.

“I honestly went into the process in that audition, so I was excited more than anything because of her openness to really get to know me well. It’s not always something you expect from a costar. And I just am so thankful that I had this partner throughout this experience because that’s not always the case.”

“In terms of what you refer to as this ‘connection’ that you noticed onscreen, it wouldn’t have worked in the same way had it not been for Annie’s openness to me,” he added.

Beside Nicholas, we saw Anne flashing a smile as she quipped, “You give me way too much credit…”

“But it’s true!” the actor reassured Anne before turning to us again.

It’s this sort of easygoing repartee that we’ve witnessed as we talked to Anne and Nicholas that helps viewers suspend disbelief that their characters, despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges they face, are truly meant for each other. In effect, you end up rooting for them.

Unusual career trajectory

The film addresses some of its themes in compellingly funny and realistic ways, like when the hilarious Annie Mumolo (as Solene’s quirky best friend Tracy) commiserates with her BFF as she tells her to ignore the naysayers because “People don’t like women who are happy.” Or the empowered Izzy sincerely asking her mom, “Why would you breakup with a talented, kind feminist?” Or Solene mulling over the downside of living under intense public scrutiny.

As Anne laughed out loud over our observations about the movie and its themes, we asked the actress if the aforementioned issues we mentioned were things that resonated with her since she began pursuing acting at a very young age (2001’s “The Princess Diaries”).

“Oh my God,” she exclaimed, laughing. “You’re right, I have had kind of an unusual career trajectory for an actor because most of the time when you’re an actor, you don’t work. And you certainly don’t become immediately recognizable.

“Nobody knows your name. They might know your face, but very rarely do they remember your name, your face and the body of work that you’ve done and the projects that you’ve put a great deal of time and effort into.

“But in my case, I just had to deal with a set of circumstances that people don’t usually get. And because I’ve been doing it since I was a child, I’ve had a long time to kind of figure it out and have some growing pains and a lot of awkward phases.

“I realized that the saddest thing would be to live your life recognizable, but not real. And so, I just put my priority into being a real person. The conditions of my life are just, well, the conditions of my life. They’re not particularly special any more than the conditions of your life are special. They’re just ‘more familiar.’

“And so, once you understand that, you end up realizing that everybody’s the same when you just stop and listen to other people. We’re all only here for a little while, so it’d be great to enjoy it as much as we can and help make it easy for other people to enjoy as well.” INQ