Jennifer Lawrence is back in new film No Hard Feelings, but, unfortunately, it is receiving a lot of backlash from the trailer alone. Lawrence skyrocketed to fame in 2012 when she starred in The Hunger Games and won her first Oscar at only 22 years old for Silver Linings Playbook. More recently, Lawrence starred in Adam McKay's Don't Look Up and Lila Neugebauer's Causeway. No Hard Feelings will be her first film of 2023, but is not getting the positive reaction she would have wished for, with the plot proving controversial.

According to the No Hard Feelings trailer, the story follows Lawrence's Maddie, whose job as an Uber driver is put at risk when her car gets impounded. Luckily, Maddie comes across helicopter parents looking for someone to date their 19-year-old son, Percy, before he goes to college. The trailer suggests they expect her to have sex with him, and in many clips from the trailer, Maddie tries to seduce Percy. In exchange, they will give her a car, and she will be able to resume her job as an Uber driver. It seems like an easy plan, but the No Hard Feelings plot has angered many.

No Hard Feelings Features A Problematic Age Gap Among Main Characters

The No Hard Feelings trailer does not clarify Maddie's age. In real life, however, Lawrence is 32, making her 13 years older than Percy. Some are accusing the film of promoting grooming because of the large age difference between characters, and even though 18 is the legal age of consent in the United States, Percy acts a lot younger in the trailer. It is clear that Percy is very immature and scared of Maddie when she encourages him to skinny-dip, and he very obviously wants Maddie to stop pursuing him.

No Hard Feelings promotes that the age gap between the Oscar-nominated Jennifer Lawrence as Maddie and Andrew Barth Feldman's Percy is okay, even though Maddie clearly has a lot more life experience than Percy, and their relationship is negatively impacting him. No Hard Feelings may have been received better as a 1980s teen comedy, but society has become more aware of the dangers of grooming since then, hence the outcry. No Hard Feelings is supposed to derive comedy from awkwardness, but the premise is actually just plain uncomfortable.

How No Hard Feelings' Movie Controversy Could Affect Its Release

The No Hard Feelings backlash has the potential to hurt or help the film. People may boycott the Jennifer Lawrence movie because of problematic messages they may not have noticed if social media users had not pointed them out. However, the controversy could also help promote the film, driving people to theaters to see what all the fuss is about.

Some might even give No Hard Feelings a chance just to see if the full movie contains a message about the dangers of grooming that the trailer omits. Similar to the Don't Worry Darling drama, controversy can make a movie more popular. With its current problems, however, No Hard Feelings may not enjoy the smoothest of releases due to its controversial plot.