Lauren Graham's 2026 Colleen Hoover Movie Is Officially Netflix's Biggest Streaming Hit

In March 2026, "Reminders of Him" proved that Colleen Hoover is a proper box office juggernaut. The story of a formerly incarcerated woman returning to her hometown to reconnect with her daughter made $89.2 million at the worldwide box office on a $25 million budget, ensuring plenty more Hoover adaptations were to come. Now, the film is adding to that success with a Netflix boost, as subscribers have pounced on "Reminders of Him" like a love-starved former inmate, sending the film to the top of the streamer's movie charts in the United States.

Is there anyone more representative of the recent romance novel adaptation trend than Colleen Hoover? Hollywood loves a BookTok phenomenon, and Hoover's novels seem designed in a lab to appeal to the "crying, screaming, throwing up" crowds on social media, who simply cannot resist what The Guardian called Hoover's "normcore thrillers."

Thus far, this has resulted in four Colleen Hoover film adaptations, all of which have received reviews ranging from dismal to disappointing. The highest-rated thus far, however, is 2026's "Reminders of Him." This adaptation of Hoover's 2022 novel didn't cause quite the stir that the buzzy "Verity" or the controversy-covered "It Ends with Us" did. But according to Rotten Tomatoes, it's both critics' and audiences' favorite. That might go some way to explaining why Netflix subscribers have sent it to the top of the streamer's charts. 

But the film also has some other things working in its favor. For one it stars the talented Maika Monroe, and it also features Lauren Graham, who's best known for playing Lorelai Gilmore on "Gilmore Girls." Graham does a decent job with the material in "Reminders of Him," and regardless of how you feel about the film as a whole, it's nice to see her in a modern-day melodrama.

"Reminders of Him" is directed by British director Vanessa Caswill, who oversaw Netflix's 2023 romantic comedy "Love at First Sight," after honing her chops on BBC series such as "Little Women," "Gold Digger," and "Thirteen." This was another romance movie based on a popular book, and wouldn't you know, the movie went straight to the top of the Netflix charts upon its release. Now, Caswill has done it again with "Reminders of Him," though this one had a successful box office run under its belt before taking over Netflix.

The film stars Maika Monroe as Kenna Rowan, who made a tragic mistake years earlier that landed her in prison. After serving her sentence, Kenna returns to her Wyoming hometown, where she hopes to finally meet her young daughter, Diem Landry (Zoe Kosovic). Sadly, Diem's grandparents Grace and Patrick Landry (Lauren Graham and Bradley Whitford) are completely opposed to the idea. But there's also a strapping young bar owner standing between her and her daughter in the form of Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers). Turns out Ledger has been helping take care of Diem, and he's similarly concerned about Kenna's return. But as the two get to know each other, romance blossoms, and Kenna finally gets a chance at redemption.

"Reminders of Him" hit Netflix U.S. on November 10, 2026, and according to streaming viewership tracker FlixPatrol, became an instant hit. The film shot to number one on November 11, 2026, proving these Colleen Hoover adaptations remain perennially popular. No doubt we'll see plenty more Hoover books being adapted in the near future.

There are plenty of movies to avoid on Netflix, and "Reminders of Him" is right on the borderline. The film managed a 56% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, which is higher than any other Colleen Hoover adaptation. But it also has an 87% audience score, which ties it with "It Ends With Us" for most popular among viewers on the site. Now it has managed to earn the endorsement of Netflixers, does this mean you should watch it?

Well, the movie has a few plus points. For one, it stars the Maika Monroe, who's able to shift from scream queen to swoon queen with ease. Meanwhile, Lauren Graham is given some of the more emotional scenes and does a solid job of bringing them to life. Otherwise, it's sort of okay for the first half? Monroe and her co-star, Tyriq Withers, manage to wring some believable emotion out of the script. Once they throw caution to the wind and just go for it, despite their previous reluctance to besmirch Monroe's deceased husband, everything starts to get a little ridiculous.

Joey Shapiro summed things up quite aptly in his review for the Chicago Reader, when he called "Reminders of Him" a "corny TV movie" that's "made with so much sincerity and conviction by all involved that it becomes watchable, if rarely 'good' by any stretch." If that appeals, or if you simply can't get enough of these romance movies that verge on providing some sort of interesting insight into human emotion only to fall short, then why not give this lesser-known Hoover adaptation a go.