Looking for Love? Check Out Our Favorite Black Romance Films From the 2020s

For a generation raised on “Love & Basketball,” “Brown Sugar,” “The Best Man,” and “Love Jones,” there’s always going to be something special about seeing Black people fall in love on screen – especially when there’s no trauma at the center of the story.

Sometimes we just want beautiful, Black people making questionable dating decisions, chasing their dreams and figuring out whether love can fit into the life they’re building.

Although it might feel like Hollywood doesn’t give us nearly as many Black love stories as it used to, the 2020s haven’t been empty. From the animated New York City cool of “Entergalactic” to the old-school glamour of “Sylvie’s Love,” here are 13 Black romance movies from this decade worth adding, or re-adding, to your watchlist.

Entergalactic (2022)

Kid Cudi gave us one of the coolest Black love stories of the decade with “Entergalactic.” Set against a colorful, animated New York City backdrop, the film follows comic book artist Jabari and photographer Meadow as attraction turns into something neither of them planned for. With art, fashion, music and an insanely stacked voice cast, it feels like “Love Jones” for a new, creative generation.

Really Love (2020)

Kofi Siriboe as a struggling painter falling for an ambitious law student? They knew exactly what they were doing. Set in Washington, D.C., “Really Love” follows the deepening relationship between Isaiah and Stevie just as their respective careers pull them in different directions. Uzo Aduba, Naturi Naughton, Mack Wilds, Blair Underwood and Michael Ealy round out the seriously good-looking cast.

Sylvie’s Love (2020)

If you miss the sweeping Black romances Hollywood used to give us, start here. Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha star as Sylvie and Robert, whose connection begins in 1950s New York and keeps finding its way back into their lives as music, careers, marriages and time complicate everything. The clothes alone deserve their own story, as it feels like an homage to old Hollywood glam.

The Photograph (2020)

2020 delivered lots of great rom-coms. Issa Rae and LaKeith Stanfield brought quiet, grown-up chemistry to “The Photograph.” Rae stars as Mae, whose discovery of a photograph left behind by her late mother sends her looking into her family’s past, while she unexpectedly falls for journalist Michael along the way. With Lil Rel Howery, Teyonah Parris, Y’lan Noel and Courtney B. Vance in the mix, the supporting cast is just as strong.

Boxing Day (2021)

Consider “Boxing Day” the Black British holiday rom-com your Christmas rotation needs. Writer-director Aml Ameen stars alongside Aja Naomi King as a British author who returns to London with his American fiancée, only for family drama and an ex-girlfriend to make the trip considerably more complicated. The film was notably billed as the first British Christmas rom-com with an almost entirely Black cast.

Rye Lane (2023)

Two heartbroken strangers, one random, chaotic day in South London, and a lot of chemistry? Sounds like a fun coming-of-age rom-com to me.

Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson star as Yas and Dom, twenty-somethings who meet while recovering from bad breakups and spend the day wandering through South London together. It’s funny, colorful, weird in the best way and easily one of the freshest rom-coms of the decade.

Meet Me Next Christmas (2024)

Christina Milian has quietly become one of streaming’s rom-com queens. Here, she plays Layla, who races around New York City trying to score a ticket to a sold-out Pentatonix Christmas concert so she can reconnect with the man she believes could be “the one.” Of course, the very fine concierge helping her on that mission, played by Devale Ellis, complicates that plan considerably.

You, Me & Tuscany (2026)

Halle Bailey and Regé-Jean Page falling in love against a beautiful Tuscan backdrop? Yeah, we’re seated. Bailey stars as Anna, a young cook whose unconventional stay at an Italian villa gets complicated when the owner’s brother Michael arrives. Sometimes the plot really can just be beautiful Black people in Italy catching feelings, drinking wine.

Resort to Love (2021)

Before “Meet Me Next Christmas,” Christina Milian was already in her romance bag. “Resort to Love” follows aspiring singer Erica, who takes a gig performing at a luxury resort only to discover she’s been hired to sing at her ex-fiancé’s wedding. Then his brother, played by Sinqua Walls, enters the picture. You can probably guess where this is going, and that’s part of the fun.

Terry McMillan Presents: Tempted by Love (2024)

Terry McMillan knows a thing or two about complicated Black love. Garcelle Beauvais stars as Ava, a celebrated chef who returns home to South Carolina to care for her aunt and unexpectedly connects with Luke, a driver 20 years her junior. What starts as an unlikely attraction forces Ava to reconsider what she thinks makes sense for her life.

Relationship Goals (2026)

Kelly Rowland and Method Man as exes forced back into each other’s orbit already sounds like a plot line we can get down with. “Relationship Goals” puts ambitious television producer Leah in competition with her former flame, Jarrett, for a major career opportunity, giving their unfinished business plenty of room to resurface. Robin Thede and Ryan Jamaal Swain help round out the fun.

Terry McMillan Presents: Forever (2024)

Meagan Good and Taye Diggs bring the grown-and-sexy energy in “Forever.”
The romantic drama follows a military veteran whose life changes after meeting a successful single mother, giving us a love story about starting over when adulthood has already handed you more than a few unexpected chapters.

The Perfect Find (2023)

Gabrielle Union stars as Jenna Jones, a fashion editor rebuilding her career after a very public breakup. Things get messy when she falls for Eric, a considerably younger videographer played by Keith Powers, who happens to be the son of her new boss, played by Gina Torres. The plot twist is even messier. Baby, pop some popcorn and pop this on.