What’s Love Got to Do with It?: On the red carpet with Lily James, Emma Thompson, Shazad Latif and Jemima Khan

Penned by Jemima Khan in her screenwriting debut, and infused with her own experiences of living in Pakistan, Shekhar Kapur’s What’s Love Got to Do with It? (not to be confused with the recent Tina Turner biopic of the same name) brings all the joy of Working Title’s best British rom-coms but with a fresh cross-cultural bent, Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Bend It Like Beckham, if you will.

Stalwart of the genre Lily James plays documentary filmmaker Zoe, a character with added bite than some of her previous outings, opposite Shazad Latif as her friend Kaz, who she settles on as the subject of her next doc when he announces he’s voluntarily going to go through the arranged marriage process. It sets them off on a journey of mutual cultural education and self-discovery, as their white British and British Pakistani backgrounds are brought into stark relief, and the intersection of tradition and modernity and the difficulty of people of all backgrounds navigating love in today’s world are brought to the fore. An ever-excellent Emma Thompson is larger than life as Zoe’s mother and a broader comic cast balance the romance with the comedy while breaking down stereotypes around South Asian communities.

The Upcoming hit the pink carpet in London’s Leicester Square for an evening of glitz and glamour and plenty of Pakistani green evening wear. A reliably charming James told us the appeal of jumping on board with the rom-com and acting alongside her long-time friend Latif.

Latif also told us about the authenticity of Khan’s script and the fun of working with an incredible cast.

Thompson spoke about how the film is refreshing twist on the rom-com genre and our approach to love in the modern day.

Khan shared her journey to writing her debut screenplay and seeing such an incredible cast bring it to life.

Check out our chats with the rest of the cast below, including Asim Chaudry, Oliver Chris, Sajal Aly, Mim Shaikh and Jeff Mirza.

Sarah Bradbury

What’s Love Got to Do with It? is released nationwide on 24^th February 2023.

Watch the trailer for What’s Love Got to Do with It? here: