Zendaya and Robert Pattinson‘s new movie, The Drama, is already facing backlash before being hitting movie theaters.
The Kristoffer Borgli-directed A24 black comedy is facing criticism because of an apparent twist in the story that has already been spoiled online.
Warning: this article contains major spoilers for the film, which doesn’t come out until April 3.
Keep reading to find out more…
According to a report by TMZ, the movie’s twist caused controversy among early screening attendees. After word spread about the twist, the parent of a Columbine High School shooting victim voiced criticism.
In the movie, Zendaya’s character Emma allegedly confesses to her fiancé Charlie, played by Robert Pattison, and her friends that she once planned a high school shooting, but never followed through, causing him to rethink his partner.
The trailer teases a scene of them going around a table, each naming the worst thing they’ve ever done, and her friends and fiancé reacting to her confession.
Tom Mauser, whose son Daniel was shot and killed in the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, told the outlet that he is outraged by the twist, as well as Zendaya‘s appearance on Jimmy Kimmel talking about the film’s themes.
“It is a romantic comedy, but it’s also a drama…everybody has their own kind of feelings leaving the theater especially with the big twist,” she said during the Kimmel appearance.
“I really hope that people don’t spoil it for each other so they’re allowed to go into it just unknowing and really experience the drama,” she went on to say.
Zendaya agreed with Jimmy that it’s “very possible” that the movie could cause “a lot of problems for a lot of people.”
“Those conversations can go many ways,” she added, as the audience laughed.
Beyond the Trailer critic Grace Randolph also spoke out on social media after seeing an early screening, though she didn’t directly spell out the twist, she did confirm that she thought it was “in bad taste.”
“Oof…. I like Robert Pattinson & Zendaya but…I think #TheDrama might be in bad taste… Am going to skip reviewing. For those of you that didn’t see my previous tweet, I saw #TheDrama this evening and I feel the extremely delicate subject matter is handled so poorly, it makes it impossible to discuss,” she wrote on X.
For those of you that didn’t see my previous tweet,
I saw #TheDrama this eveningAnd I feel the extremely delicate subject matter is handled so poorly, it makes it impossible to discuss
— Grace Randolph (@GraceRandolph) March 25, 2026
“It’s like…the whole movie,” she responded to a fan asking about TMZ‘s reported twist.
“I think … there’s a serious concern here about normalizing this behavior, and maybe even glamorizing it,” she added in response to another fan.
Here’s how A24 describes the movie: “A happily engaged couple is put to the test when an unexpected turn sends their wedding week off the rails.”
Watch the trailer…
Zendaya flashed her possible wedding ring while making an appearance at a Las Vegas wedding chapel to promote The Drama recently.
