If you’re a regular here at LaineyGossip, you probably know I love a romance, to the point where I pretty much study romance. There are formulas to romance in storytelling, and of course there are tropes. The Friends to Loves trope isn’t my favourite. I am convinced that this is the reason Jane Austen’s Emma is not quite as popular as Pride and Prejudice – Emma’s a great character, just as great in my opinion as Elizabeth Bennet but the friends to lovers romance between Emma and Mr Knightley is not nearly as hot as the tension that goes on and on and on between Lizzie and Mr Darcy. Also Mr Knightley was too old for me, but that might just be me.
In real (Hollywood) life, we currently have a friends to lovers romance playing out before us and I’m happy to say that it is actually hotter than what we get in Emma. Lupita Nyong’o and Joshua Jackson have just hard launched their situationship.
Jodie Turner-Smith filed for divorce rom Josh at the beginning of October. Three weeks later he was seen with Lupita and a group of friends at the Janelle Monae concert in LA. Everyone started speculating that they might be a thing… until Lupita put her own breakup on blast on Instagram, telling the whole world that her ex, Selema Masekela, had deceived her. She spent the next few weeks after that living out her heartbreak quite publicly…
Until this past weekend when she and Josh were seen grocery shopping together, but trying not be photographed together. And then on Tuesday they were papped on a walk together holding hands – TMZ has the photos.
Lupita and Josh are seasoned celebrities. I don’t buy that they wouldn’t have been aware that the paps had either followed them there or… somehow just ended up there. Whatever the case, the way I’m playing Photo Assumption on these shots, they don’t look like they give a sh-t. Most people are interpreting this as a hard launch. What started out as friendship has turning into romance.
And it’s a trope because it does happen – the familiarity is already established, there is trust, which probably right now is more important than ever to Lupita with how vulnerable she is after her acrimonious split. I would imagine that there was already attraction there, I mean look at them. So the conditions were in place, and here we are, Lupita and Josh, Hollywood’s newest couple.
But I called it a situationship for a reason. Because right now it’s exciting, both of them coming out of heartbreak, to focus on something fun and sexy. To me these two look like they’re in a lust haze. And eventually the haze clears. Will this be a rebound or a relationship? We’re squawking about this today – join us!
Also attached - Lupita at the premiere of The Color Purple last night in LA.
