Emily Henry, famed for her works such as “Funny Story,” “Beach Read,” “Book Lovers,” “Happy Place,” and the upcoming “Great Big Beautiful Life,” is a powerhouse in the romance genre. It seemed inevitable that one of her narratives would leap from page to screen. In this adaptation, Blyth portrays the buttoned-up Alex Nilsen, while Bader embodies his adventurous best friend, Poppy Wright. The duo shares an annual tradition of vacationing together, embracing the freedom and spontaneity that travel entails. As these trips unfold, their connection deepens, raising the question of whether they were always destined for one another.

Alistair Ryder from Looper provided a lukewarm review of the movie, likening it to a lesser version of the classic “When Harry Met Sally” by Rob Reiner and Nora Ephron. Both films indeed begin with a road trip as the protagonists return home from college. Nonetheless, if you’re in the mood for a light-hearted rom-com with strong performances from the leads, “People We Meet on Vacation” fits the bill. So, what’s the story?

Following their initial road trip back to Ohio, Poppy and Alex are forced to stay overnight at a rundown motel due to car issues. Despite their contrasting personalities—Poppy being impulsive and disorganized, and Alex enjoying structure—they form a close friendship. Years later, Poppy receives an invite to Alex’s brother David’s (played by Miles Heizer) wedding in Barcelona. As a travel writer with a penchant for globe-trotting, Poppy convinces her boss, Swapna Bakshi-Highsmith (Jameela Jamil), to send her on assignment to Barcelona, hoping to reconnect with Alex.

Tom Blyth may be familiar to audiences for his role as a young Coriolanus Snow in the 2023 “Hunger Games” prequel, “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” In this film, he portrays the future tyrannical leader of Panem, a character originally played by Donald Sutherland in the primary series. Set during the 10th Hunger Games, Blyth’s Snow is determined to reclaim his family’s fading prestige by mentoring a tribute from the underdog District 12. He discovers a potential ally in his tribute, Lucy Gray Baird (played by Rachel Zegler), whose performance skills might just tip the scales in their favor.

Then, we learn about the massive fracture in Alex and Poppy’s friendship courtesy of their budding attraction and human roadblocks in the form of Alex’s long-term on-again, off-again girlfriend Sarah (“The White Lotus” Season 3 standout Sarah Catherine Hook) and Poppy’s short-term flings, like her flighty jet-setter boyfriend Trey (“Emily in Paris” supporting player Lucien Laviscount). This is a romantic comedy, though, so the two figure out a way to put aside their differences for a big romantic kiss in the rain and declarations of love that had obviously been simmering for years … but at the risk of spoiling the entire movie, we’ll keep some of the bigger plot details under wraps. So where have you seen this movie’s two stars before?

If Tom Blyth looks familiar to you, we’re willing to bet it’s because you saw him star as a young Coriolanus Snow — the future president of the dystopian nation called Panem that serves as the setting for “The Hunger Games” — in that trilogy’s 2023 prequel “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” (Just to refresh your memory, the late, great Donald Sutherland played the oldest form of Snow to date in the original trilogy.) In this prequel, set during the 10th-ever Games, Blyth’s Coriolanus, whose family’s fortunes are fading fast, is determined to be the best Capitol mentor to his tribute and win the Games outright to restore glory to the Snow name; unfortunately, he’s given District 12, a deeply impoverished district of Panem that hasn’t ever produced a winner. When he meets his female tribute, singer and performer Lucy Gray Baird (“West Side Story” and “Snow White” star Rachel Zegler), he realizes her flair for performing can potentially help them in the games, and the two strike up an unexpected connection.

As for Emily Bader, aside from “People We Met on Vacation,” she starred as the titular Lady Jane Grey in the Amazon Prime original series “My Lady Jane,” about the real British royal who reigned as queen of England for an infamous nine days. Unfortunately for Bader and audiences around the world, Amazon cancelled the fun, deliberately anachronistic “My Lady Jane” after its single debuted in 2024, but at least that did free Bader up to appear in this fun romantic comedy. “People We Meet on Vacation” is streaming on Netflix now.