Babies, 2026.
Directed by Lauren Miller Rogen.
Starring Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Issa Rae, Kate Berlant, Zach Cherry, Dan Stevens, Ashley Park, David Strathairn, Ed Helms and Sharon Stone.
SYNOPSIS:
A couple grappling with parenthood finds their lives turned upside down when their friend and her toddler move in after a divorce, giving them an unexpected crash course in raising a child.
Seth Rogen and Anna Kendrick’s latest film Babies, written and directed by Rogen’s wife Lauren Miller Rogen, is a funny, heartfelt and relatable tale of a couple facing whether or not they really want to have children as they take in one of their friends and her daughter amid a divorce, all the while the rest of their friend’s families keep growing. The pair shine brightly together with their chemistry and Miller Rogen’s tight and humorous script.
Rogen and Kendrick play Aaron and Annie, a couple who have been together for nearly 20 years but are seemingly content without kids even as they keep getting asked if they will ever have one. Of the two Kendrick in particular delivers a strong performance, balancing the realities of Annie’s arc with nuance as she not only questions whether or not to have kids but also struggles through her mother’s illness. Kendrick gives plenty of depth through her wit and emotive portrayal which makes it easy for audiences to be on her side regardless of what they think Annie should do. Rogen is a far cry from his Knocked Up or Pineapple Express days as a grown manchild as he plays a supportive and loving husband. He makes Aaron likeable, understandable and has many funny one-liners and deliveries that easily elicit laughs. They both carry the film incredibly well that makes you believe in their character’s marriage and connection.
Among the supporting cast are Issa Rae and Kate Berlant as Annie’s best friends and mothers to young girls. Like Kendrick, Rae does a nice job balancing Becky’s ambitions as a working woman with her needs as a mother, especially to a teenaged girl. Berlant’s Eliza kicks off a lot of the story though as she brings herself and her daughter to stay at Aaron and Annie’s home after deciding on divorce, forcing them to get a clearer picture of everything parenting entails. Both women carry different weights in their roles as Rae’s Becky juggles her responsibilities while Berlant’s Eliza goes through a messy divorce in performances both comedic and serious.
The supporting cast of Zach Cherry and Dan Stevens as their respective husbands and David Strathairn as Annie’s father round out the cast really nicely. Every character is layered with none of them falling into standard archetypes like the inattentive or cheating husband or nagging wife. Miller Rogen gives them complexity with not all the issues being in clear black and white, making them and their relationships relatable. The story’s structure is also of note with many of the beats being an episodic day-in-the-life of parenting, being around children or looking after your parents mentally or physically. It emphasizes the strength of Miller Rogen’s themes and character arcs to the point that many of the beats could almost serve as short films of their own.
Babies is an emotionally layered film complete with great performances from the entire cast. Rogen and Kendrick showcase their relationship with nuance and wit while the supporting cast is equally compelling, their performances strengthened by the insightful themes of adulthood and parenthood.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Ricky Church
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