I briefly touched on my issues with The Drama when I reviewed the film last week, but there’s something that really needs to be said about how comedies should not use school shootings as a plot device.

It’s difficult to ignore the reality that mass shootings have become part of our everyday landscape. I know both family and friends who went to schools or universities impacted by school shootings, even if they were not physically injured. The impact of those experiences doesn’t disappear just because enough time has passed or because a story decides to frame it as a joke.

I don’t know what Kristoffer Borgli was thinking when he wrote the screenplay for The Drama, but I don’t believe he approached this subject with any real consideration for that kind of impact. There’s a meaningful difference between the kind of satire he explored in Dream Scenario, which critiques culture and ego, and a story that uses mass shootings as a source of comedy. One is commentary. The other risks trivializing lived trauma.

The synopsis for The Drama reads: “A happily engaged couple is put to the test when an unexpected turn sends their wedding week off the rails.”

It would have honestly been nice to have a hint of what that unexpected turn actually is, especially given the subject matter. And yet, there was nothing in the trailers, television spots, or social media marketing that indicated Zendaya’s character had a history involving a planned school shooting. Worst of all, there was zero warning in the screening invitations sent to press ahead of screenings. It doesn’t matter that Emma didn’t go through with it because of another shooting that resulted in the death of a classmate. The film still uses that premise as a recurring source of humor, and A24 made a very deliberate decision to keep that information from audiences.

That choice matters. Marketing isn’t just promotion—it’s context. And in this case, that context was withheld.

I watched a trailer ahead of attending a screening for another film, and there was no indication that this was where the story was headed. What was presented was a romantic comedy with a vague disruption at its center—not a film that would incorporate school shootings as part of its comedic framework. Had I known that going in, I would not have been in that theater. I would have immediately rescinded my RSVP to The Drama.

That brings me to Robert Pattinson and Zendaya. They aren’t just actors; they’re actors with a platform, and their press tours are closely watched. What’s striking is how little of that platform was used to discuss what The Drama is actually about. Instead, the press tour leaned into a lighter, more playful tone, which ends up reinforcing the disconnect between how the film was sold and what it actually contains.

By avoiding the subject, the marketing and press cycle effectively sold a completely different film than the one audiences were given.

There are films that handle mass shootings with the care and gravity the subject demands.

Fran Kranz’s Mass premiered at Sundance in 2021 and centers on two sets of parents—one grieving the loss of a child, the other the parents of the shooter—coming together in the aftermath of a school shooting. The film is defined by its restraint and its willingness to sit in discomfort without exploiting it. Ann Dowd’s performance, in particular, reflects the emotional weight the material requires.

Megan Park’s The Fallout premiered at SXSW in 2021 and approaches the aftermath of a school shooting from the perspective of a student processing significant trauma. It doesn’t attempt to soften the subject or mine it for humor; instead, it focuses on the lingering emotional effects and the way trauma reshapes everyday life.

Both films understand something essential: this is not material that benefits from being reframed as a punchline.

And that’s really the core issue here. Comedy can push boundaries, and it can even confront difficult subjects—but not every subject is equally suited to that approach. When a film takes something as serious and ongoing as mass shootings and folds it into a romantic comedy framework, it doesn’t come across as bold. It comes across as misjudged.

There’s a difference between challenging an audience and misrepresenting what you’re asking them to engage with. The Drama crosses that line, and what it leaves behind isn’t satire—it’s a reminder that not every subject is fair game for a joke.

A24 released The Drama in theaters on April 3, 2026.

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