When documentary filmmaker Zoe's childhood friend Kaz, whose parents are from Pakistan, agrees to an "assisted" marriage, Zoe sees a potential story in the making. That's the endearing premise of What’s Love Got to Do with It?, directed by award-winning filmmaker Shekhar Kapur (Elizabeth) and written and produced by Jemima Khan (Impeachment: American Crime Story). The film, which nabbed the Best Comedy award at the 2022 Rome Film Festival and comes from the folks who gave us Love Actually, opens May 5.

Lily James (Pam & Tommy, Mamma Mia!) and Shazad Latif (Star Trek: Discovery) headline What’s Love Got to Do with It?, playing Zoe and Kaz, respectively. The upbeat duo, who have known each other as neighbors since childhood, have a tight bond, which makes Zoe more than just curious as to why Kaz would agree to what she sees as an antiquated arranged marriage. Deeper and comedic explorations of familial bonds, and relationships of all sorts, are on the agenda in this rom-com with a twist.

The film also stars Shabana Azmi (Halo), Emma Thompson (Matilda), Sajal Aly (Yakeen Ka Safar), Asim Chaudhry (Black Mirror: Bandersnatch), and Jeff Mirza (Eternals). Well-known Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan also appears as himself. Shazad Latif, director Shekhar Kapur, and writer/producer Jemima Khan shared more about the film and its unique take on bonds of all kinds with MovieWeb.

Shazad Latif Talks Taking on a Rare Rom-Com

Shazad Latif in What's Love Got to Do with It
StudioCanal

“I'm a big movie buff and movie geek,” beamed Shazad Latif about why he wanted to dive into What’s Love Got to Do with It? “My mum used to keep a little diary of the movies she and I would see. I was influenced by good movies and good tastes. I love the modern stuff, but I loved a wave of all the oldies, like The Apartment, which I feel like our movie is sort of similar to. It has a very serious undertone to it. Our movie does the same thing, but also rounds some corners.”

Indeed it does. The film’s main throughline is something everybody can relate to: How do you find lasting love in a frenzied world? But it goes beyond that. Sure, Zoe is discouraged with dating and bizarre dating apps. But Kaz wants to follow his parents’ example for a modern-day “assisted” marriage. Will Zoe have something to learn as she films Kaz’s seemingly unconventional journey?

“[Director] Shekhar Kapur was in the Himalayas somewhere right before we started this. He's a very spiritual man, so he was just in that kind of headspace, and I suppose that helped with some of our scenes,” Latif shared. “For example, the tree house scene at the end of the movie. Normally, that would be high fashion scene, and you'd be worried about it. But seeing this is all about love, that whole day was really about silence, and just opening your heart.

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“And you can even say, ‘action!’ but you make a decision to start when you're ready,” continued Latif. “For us, it was after about two minutes. And we just sat there for minutes in silence together in the tree house, and just went into it when we were ready. It’s those kinds of moments that really stay with you. And for me, that's what the process was all about here.”

Another great thing about the project was that Latif had the opportunity to work with a dear friend. “Lily James has been one of my best friends for like 15 years now, so being able to make a movie with her and going to set and with your mate is a very lovely experience and a very rare thing,” added Latif. “We just wanted to make the most of it and take advantage of the fact that we could improvise. There were no egos.”

Director Shekhar Kapur on the Film’s Passionate Message

To understand where What’s Love Got to Do with It? got much of its heart, look no further than director Shekhar Kapur and writer/producer Jemima Khan. The passionate filmmakers were candid about why they wanted to do the project and why it was important for this particular rom-com to be released.

“This is a good time for the film, because the world is driving us to become more tribal. We all are heading towards that because there's so much fear in the world,” explained Kapur. “There's so much angst. I wanted to make a film in which you discover something beyond identity.”

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He went on to say that during the shoot, he worked with the exceptional cast, telling them that the goal was to reveal “the heart” of the characters. “And not just that we are ratios. ‘I am Muslim,’ or ‘I'm a white girl.’ But what is behind that? What lies in your hearts? Who are you? For Lily, Shazad, and even Emma, it was, ‘Let me see who you are. And once you become who you are, then you encourage the audience to go beyond identity.’ You have to take your films out of these so-called identities.”

Curiously, Kapur was taking photographs of the melting snow in the Himalayas when this film came about. “I was there for another film about water. I’m a water activist and I understand that glaciers are melting what it's going to do to us, especially the glaciers in India and Pakistan. So, this film was good for me. It is about multiculturalism.

Screenwriter Jemima Khan on Her Process

What's Love Got to Do with It cast
StudioCanal

For screenwriter Jemima Khan, the brainchild behind Impeachment: American Crime Story, the film was a deeply personal and moving experience. She had to bring it to life.

“I lived in Pakistan for 10 years. I went there when I was 20, and I left when I was 30,” said Khan. “I lived in a very conservative, extended family set up with my ex-husband, his sisters, their husbands, their children. There were 26 of us in one house. And they had arranged marriages. Ours was the only love marriage — and the only divorce. So, I went into this with certain preconceived ideas about what an arranged marriage is. I came away with a slightly different idea. And in his family, particularly, it became known as assisted marriage. That was interesting to me. I like the idea of walking into love rather than falling into love. You don't start with love, but you end with it. I wanted to do something that we've not really seen on the big screen.”

Khan also wanted to make a film that was partially set in Pakistan, “because Pakistan is quite scary to a lot of people, and I really wanted to reflect a slightly different Pakistan to the one that we not know better in the West.”

As for the cast, the screenwriter/producer was thrilled with everybody here, particularly Lily James. “I think she's a really talented actress, and she was definitely the first choice for the role for all of us. She's incredibly hardworking. She’s always the one asking for another take and always questioning herself and everybody on set to make sure it’s all right. Lily is very diligent and very scrupulous in her method. I loved her.”

What’s Love Got to Do with It?, a StudioCanal and Working Title Production, is available in theaters May 5th.