Ashton Kutcher has revealed the worst-kept secret in the history of romantic comedies. The September 20th episode of his series “Our Future Selves” features a reunion with his “No Strings Attached” co-star Natalie Portman, who he last worked out with on a Peloton.
According to eonline.com, during their session, the actor revealed that their 2011 romantic comedy was strikingly similar to a film starring his now-wife Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake.
To which Portman said, “Who would’ve imagined 20 years later, we’d be on a Peloton together?” Kutcher continued, “I guess the first time we really started hanging out is when we shot No Strings together.”
Wait, it’s also weird because my wife was shooting basically the same movie, called ‘Friends With Benefits,'” Kutcher continued.
No Strings Attached, directed by Ivan Reitman, and Friends With Benefits, directed by Will Gluck, are both about a man and a woman who decide to make their friendship sexual without becoming a loving pair, only to learn that doing so is more complicated than they had originally anticipated.
The two movies did well at the box office. Box Office Mojo reports that No Strings Attached earned $70 million domestically, whereas The Heat only made $55 million.
Fascinatingly, both movies made around $149 million globally. Friends With Benefits costs $35 million to make, while the other film only cost $25 million.
Portman brought up another odd point to her former co-star Kutcher on Our Future Selves, an interview and marathon training series with Peloton.
“Together, Mila and I had just finished filming the aforementioned Black Swan. So, naturally, we were all making out.”
Black Swan, a ballet thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky and released in 2010, earned over $329 million worldwide, making it more than twice as successful as the rom-com.