One Night Only Director Knows What Everyone Was Saying About The Movie's Creepy World [Exclusive]

From the moment the first trailer debuted, audiences began referring to Will Gluck's romantic comedy "One Night Only" as the "sex Purge" movie. It makes sense, because the rom-com has a similar premise as the Blumhouse franchise in which murder is legal one day of the year: in the politically warped world of "One Night Only," single people can legally only have sex on one night per year as a result of a government mandate meant to restore "family values" throughout the land.

I had a fun time with the film, largely thanks to the charming performances from stars Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner, but at the same time, I don't think the movie is fully equipped to handle the seriousness of its conceit. In an interview before the film's release, I asked Gluck how he approached the option of truly exploring the legislation that has reshaped this cinematic world, versus including it as more of a stepping stone to the larger story he wanted to tell:

"I am very aware of the online discourse about this world and this movie being the 'sex Purge,' and rightfully so. But I don't want this movie to be about that. And I know I get some blowback going, 'How could you make a movie about this not being about that?' Because I love exploring characters and situations. Whenever us humans get put in situations, no matter how or why the situation happens, we still have to be humans and get through the day. And that's what interests me. So we didn't want it to overwhelm. We wanted to explain it. We didn't want to take a side. We wanted to show both sides, but we wanted it to be about these two people going through this crazy night."

Despite the director's claim here that the filmmakers didn't want to "take a side" (and, yes, that is a pretty odd to say in this context), the movie clearly frames its mandate in a negative light. We see a politician explaining it during a TV interview, where he says it's a "badge of honor" to be an incel in this environment, and a tech bro played by "The Sheep Detectives" actor Nicholas Braun who explains how great the mandate is for his company's bottom line. Nearly every other character speaks negatively about the mandate at some point or another, and there are anti-mandate signs in the background and even an anti-mandate protest concert being advertised throughout.

But for Gluck, his characters are more important than the world they inhabit, and the details of their situation are meant to eventually fade into the background. Reasonable viewers can quibble with the way the movie explores (or fails to explore) the ideas it raises, but the film ultimately focuses on people who are living in an oppressive environment and trying to make the best of it. Given some of the absurd and draconian things Americans have lived through in the past few years, I'm guessing a lot of audience members will be able to relate to that fundamental truth. There's a built-in resilience to the story that's reflective of how we all wake up and read horrible things in the news, but still have to put our heads down and go on with our days.

You'll be able to hear my full interview with the director on the August 12, 2026 episode of our /Film Weekly podcast. "One Night Only" is in theaters now.