There’s nothing quite like a cinematic love triangle. Alluring, chaotic and competitive, love triangles have given us some of the most jaw-dropping plot twists, passionate rivalries and bittersweet endings cinema has to offer. From Twilight to Bridget Jones, or even looking to the stage and going back as far as Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, the love triangle has become a staple genre in itself. After all, there is a specific kind of thrill to be found when debating whose ‘team’ you’re vying for, the pros and cons of each suitor and the disappointment (or elation) during a film’s final scene when our protagonist makes their final decision. Now, with the release of Luca Guadagnino’s steamy, sultry Challengers coming mere months after Celine Song’s Past Lives, it seems cinema’s latest obsession is with the love triangle.

First and foremost, the love triangle has been around for longer than you think. While My Best Friend’s Wedding or Bridget Jones may be the first example to come to mind for some, for those more inclined to pine over Cary Grant or Humphrey Bogart than Hugh Grant and Colin Firth, the first thought may be of The Philadelphia Story, The Apartment or Sabrina. Even Jane Austen and F. Scott Fitzgerald adored a love triangle, famously employing them as opportunities to see the moral growth of their respective protagonists, alongside, of course, the occasional good old-fashioned fight. Let’s also not forget how diverse the love triangle is – few other tropes can be found in rom-coms, thrillers, fantasy and even the occasional horror film. If there is one thing that a teenage vampire and animated fish from 2004’s Shark Tale have in common, it’s the age-old question of which love interest to choose.

But what is it about the love triangle which captivates us? Georgia, 20, grew up (like many of us) engrossed in the hysteria of Twilight and, for her, it was the love triangle that really made the series what it was. Speaking to Stylist, she says: “It created that whole division with all the fans where it was ‘Jacob vs Edward’ and it was such a big thing. I think that’s what made Twilight, that was the hook that made it so famous.”

Love triangles offer us something many of us, however subconsciously, want in our own lives: the desire to be fought for. Two people meeting and seamlessly falling in love is all well and good in our own lives, but the love triangle offers a fascinating obstacle, and everyone involved must up their game and prove themselves worthy, ultimately making the eventual union that much sweeter. It’s the dramatic plot of sumptuous novels and all the greatest Sex and the City episodes, it’s Helen of Troy and Greek myth; it’s proving your love when face-to-face with the opposition. In the case of Guadagnino’s Challengers, Zendaya’s Tashi Duncan makes it very clear to Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist’s characters: win the tennis tournament if you want my number.

Challengers also pays tribute to another important history of the cinematic love triangle in its exploration of queer subtexts. There is a rich history of the love triangle being used for exploring characters bisexuality (think The Talented Mr Ripley or Y Tu Mama Tambien) and while often this can draw criticism for leaning into negative stigmas of bisexuality, such as promiscuity and a need to ‘choose’, the films also offers rich discourses on queerness. 

There are naturally grounds to argue these films do queerbait, teasing the two same-sex individuals in the love triangle will unite (the viral ‘Churro Scene’ from Challengers offering one of many examples from the film), only for little to ever come of it. As Challengers fan Loz tells Stylist: “I don’t think Challengers queerbaits entirely, I think it does in points but there’s no definitive proof that these men aren’t queer.” Loz also highlights that cis-gendered, heterosexual women may find the queer possibilities of love triangles so tantalising “because it’s a sexual situation you don’t have to insert yourself into,” allowing you to watch a sexual relationship play out undisturbed by the male gaze. 

The love triangle, for better or worse, allows some of us to delve into something darker within ourselves, some secret competitiveness and inherent need to prove our worth. Recently, it seems Hollywood is gladly taking on the darker side of the beloved trope. Past Lives offers us a contemplative, heart-breaking consideration of what could have been, and while there is no dramatic argument in the rain in Song’s film, the search of its three protagonists to find closure from a romantic history which was never fully explored remains immensely captivating. Challengers, meanwhile, offers us all the anger and frustration of a love triangle where nobody is winning. It seems Hollywood is setting aside the usual conventions for now, and instead of asking us to pick sides, simply offers us three individuals who are somehow entangled in a mess of miscommunication, regret and, occasionally, tennis.

Images: Warner Bros.