A comedy that fakes it worse than its main character.
Ah, pregnancy—the miracle of life, the beauty of creation, the perfect setup for a comedy that should’ve been so much better than this. But instead of a sharp, hilarious take on motherhood, societal expectations, and baby fever gone wrong, Kinda Pregnant gives us a film so painfully unfunny, I half expected the credits to roll with an apology note.
So lets discuss this plot, shall we? Lainy Newton (Amy Schumer) has spent her whole life dreaming of motherhood. You know, like kids do—staging elaborate childbirth scenes with their dolls and screaming expletives at imaginary nurses. Totally healthy behavior. But life doesn’t always go as planned, and when her best friend Kate (Claudia Doumit) announces she’s pregnant, Lainy reacts in the most rational way possible: by faking her own pregnancy.
Yes, instead of therapy (or just a single self-reflective thought), Lainy slaps on a fake baby bump, joins a prenatal class, and starts living her pregnant woman fantasy—enjoying free seats on the subway, glowing compliments from strangers, and the undivided attention of Megan (Brianne Howey), an actual mother-to-be. Oh, and there’s a love interest too—Josh (Will Forte), Megan’s brother, who somehow falls for Lainy despite her entire personality being a chaotic red flag in human form.
If this sounds like the setup for a hilarious comedy, don’t get your hopes up. Instead, Kinda Pregnant is a movie that manages to take an insane premise and make it feel... boring.
Why, well I am glad you asked. First let's start with the main character. Lainy isn’t lovable, she’s just annoying. The central friendship with Kate is about as deep as a kiddie pool. The romance with Josh feels as forced as a bad Hallmark movie. And the humor? Oh, the humor. It’s like watching someone explain a joke badly, over and over again, for 90 minutes.
Schumer, who’s capable of being funny when the material is right, spends the movie flailing between wacky and weepy, never quite landing on a tone that makes sense. Some supporting players—Lizze Broadway and Urzila Carlson, specifically—deliver a few solid laughs, but the movie doesn’t seem to realize they’re the only ones keeping it from being a total disaster.
To make matters worse, Kinda Pregnant thinks it has something important to say about pregnancy, womanhood, and the way society treats expectant mothers. And for about five minutes, it almost does—highlighting how pregnant women are simultaneously idolized and ignored, doted on but left to struggle alone. But then the movie forgets it was trying to make a point and goes back to… whatever it thinks it’s doing.
By the time the inevitable “Lainy gets caught” moment arrives (because, duh, we know that’s coming), the movie is already wheezing toward the finish line, desperately trying to justify its own existence. But much like Lainy’s fake pregnancy, it’s all just an elaborate deception that ends in disappointment.
Look, I’ll give the movie this—there are ways this could have worked. Maybe if it leaned into the absurdity, went full Bridesmaids-style raunchy, or actually explored what drives someone to such an unhinged decision. But instead, it just sort of... happens.
The Hangover made lying funny. Bridesmaids made female friendship hilarious. Baby Mama made pregnancy comedy work. Kinda Pregnant just makes you wish you were watching literally any of those movies instead.
My final score for this Netflix Film is 1 out of 5 Byran's. Because, I doubt Maury could save this mess.
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