Anyone But You Secretly Creates A Rom-Com Universe With Emma Stone's $75 Million Movie From 15 Years Ago

Summary A subtle reference to Easy A in Anyone But You hints at a potential romcom cinematic universe.

Natasha Bedingfield songs connect Easy A and Anyone But You, showcasing the director's musical tastes.

A sequel to Anyone But You could mark Emma Stone's romcom comeback with a possible love triangle storyline.

Anyone But You includes a surprising connection to a fan-favorite 15-year-old romantic comedy starring Emma Stone that could create a shared romcom cinematic universe. With a high-concept premise and two up-and-coming stars in the lead roles, Anyone But You succeeded by bringing back a style of star-studded romcom that was thought to be a thing of the past. Loosely adapted from William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, Anyone But You stars Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney as two people who hate each other, pretend to be in a relationship, and end up falling in love.

Shared cinematic universes are usually reserved for genre franchises like the Marvel Cinematic Universe or The Conjuring Universe, which can be linked by MacGuffins and character team-ups. But Anyone But You may have just pioneered the first ever romcom cinematic universe, since the director included an Easter egg that sets it in the same universe as one of his older romantic comedies. The most likely explanation is that this Easter egg is just a wink to the audience, but it could be establishing a romcom franchise with crossover potential.

Anyone But You Subtly References Easy A's Olive Penderghast

Olive's name appears on a driver's sign at the airport

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Anyone But You contains a subtle reference to Easy A. No characters from Easy A have an overt cameo appearance in Anyone But You, but there is a sly reference to its lead character. A driver can be spotted at the airport holding up a sign bearing Olive Penderghast’s name. Olive, of course, was the protagonist of Easy A, played by an early-career Emma Stone. So, this blink-and-miss-it Easter egg could confirm that the two films are set in the same universe. Both Anyone But You and Easy A were directed by Will Gluck, but the similarities don’t end there.

They’re both based on classic literature, too: Anyone But You is a modernized adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing and Easy A is a modernized adaptation of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Olive’s name on the driver’s sign could just be a neat reference to the director’s earlier work, or it could be a confirmation that Anyone But You takes place in the same universe as Easy A. Now that this connection has been established, it could lead to a crossover sequel in the future.

Will Gluck Further Connects Anyone But You & Easy A With Natasha Bedingfield Songs

Gluck is clearly a huge Natasha Bedingfield fan

Olive’s name on the driver’s sign at the airport isn’t the only nod to Easy A that Gluck included in Anyone But You. The two romcoms are also linked by their use of Natasha Bedingfield’s music. Easy A has a running gag in which “Pocketful of Sunshine” is Olive’s favorite song and she sings it on repeat. Anyone But You similarly uses a Bedingfield song, as “Unwritten” is used as Ben’s serenity song. The song starts out as a running joke between Ben and Bea and later expands to include the rest of the film’s cast.

This is probably more of a sign of Gluck’s musical tastes than a sign of a shared cinematic universe. The fact that he’s used two separate Natasha Bedingfield songs as crucial plot points in two separate movies just means that he’s a massive Natasha Bedingfield fan. However, now that the Bedingfield precedent has been set, any potential future movies in this crossover romcom franchise would need to utilize more of her songs, and maybe even feature a cameo appearance by Bedingfield herself if they can get her.

Anyone But You 2 Could Kickstart Emma Stone's Rom-Com Comeback

A lot of Stone's earliest movies were romcoms

Anyone But You has been such a huge hit, both in theaters and on streaming, that it’s likely to eventually get a sequel reteaming Powell and Sweeney. Anyone But You 2 would give Gluck the perfect opportunity to confirm the crossover between Anyone But You and Easy A. Rather than just having the odd Easter egg here and there, Anyone But You’s sequel could actually connect the movies even further by having Stone reprise her role as Olive alongside Powell’s Ben and Sweeney’s Bea, possibly creating a new love triangle.

Bringing Stone back as Olive for an Anyone But You sequel would be a great way to get her back into the romantic comedy genre. From Easy A to Ghosts of Girlfriends Past to Crazy, Stupid, Love to Friends with Benefits, a lot of Stone’s earliest movies were romcoms. But as she’s focused on darker projects like Birdman and Poor Things, her romcom roles have fallen by the wayside. A role in the Anyone But You sequel could kickstart a romcom comeback.