Hilary Swank and Molly Smith on Producing Something Borrowed and What Makes a Good Chick Flick

Romantic comedies these days do well commercially, but they're generally considered empty calories. But they haven't always. Is this just a matter of grumpy critics or snobs today, or does the genre need a shot in the arm?

SMITH: My opinion is that there hasn't been a good one in years, and we hope that we're changing that come May 6. I think what it is is that, like any genre, it can feel tired. It can feel like you've seen the exact same formula 10 times, it's just a different couple popped into it. That's what we loved about Something Borrowed. We're trying to do something original in a genre that can feel tired. This is definitely not a formulaic movie -- you're not going to know how it's going to end within a matter of 10 minutes. I think this movie has a lot of twists and turns, and it's a sort of moral dilemma or real character dramedy than a light, fluffy, formulaic romantic comedy. So we were excited to do something a little bit different in the general.

How does the sequel for this work? Something Blue?

SMITH: Something Blue follows Darcy's character, really, in the aftermath. This one's more Rachel's story -- Rachel's really coming into her own. The sequel follows Darcy really coming into her own in the aftermath. She ends up going to London.

SWANK: Kate [Hudson] is really excited about it. She really hopes we can get that to the screen.

That's mostly what I was getting at: Is Something Blue necessarily dependent on how Something Borrowed does next month, or is that getting made anyway?

SMITH: Obviously we're hopeful that this movie is a success so it makes sense to make the sequel, and we're developing the sequel with high hopes to do so. But we want to make ure that people fall in love with this movie first so they're invested enough to go into the sequel.

A lot of people bristle at the term "chick flick." What are each of your takes on that phrase, particularly as it might apply to your films?

SWANK: I think it depends on what people's definition of what a chick flick is. Ultimately, any movie that is just shiny and glossy with a bow tied around it, to me, is a little boring. But I think films that are more complex... I mean, this is based on Emily Giffin's book. She writes books and stories that women love, but to me they're more complex and they have a little bit of heart and they're based in something more interested in reality. To me, if you use that as the definition of it, then it doesn't have a negative connotation.

SMITH: Well, there's "chick flick," and there's "chick lit." I do think there's a lighter connotation to that, and it feels like a movie that guys are sort of dragged to. So that's negative. But I always get proud when guys come up to us and say, "Wow, I really liked that!" I'd say this is more of a date movie than a chick flick, because really, it's about a group of friends in their 30s, and the complications of what happens when you're trying to figure out where your life is going. That's what I love about this. And it just happens to be two females at the front and center of it. Their friendship is the central storyline. But I don't think of this as the more clichéd "chick flick" that people might think it is.

What's next for 2S? Where do you see yourselves five years down the line, or 10 years down the line?

SWANK: Good question.

SMITH: We're hoping that we've made a slate of projects that, again, feel fresh and have a common theme of a lot of heart. Terms of Endearment is Hilary's and my favorite movie, and to tell a sort of story like that... If you think about it, it's just a mother/daughter story, but it's one of the most brilliant films. We hope we can make classic films. Especially in this genre -- I think the hope with romantic comedies is to make ones that last, that people will be talking about 10 years from now, like When Harry Met Sally or something like that. We definitely have a diverse slate in development. A lot of it's female driven, but not all of it. And we're excited for it. We're excited to keep trying to challenge ourselves and tell fresh stories.

Hilary, do you envision yourself going more into producing in that time?

SWANK: I like to do both. I'm hoping that opportunity will arise in both areas. I love to act, and I'm really enjoying producing. Like I said, there's not going to be a way for me to tell all the stories I want to tell by just acting.

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