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There is truly nothing better than the feeling of watching a movie, leaning over to the person next to you and whispering, "This is exactly like the book."

You've done the homework, studied the plot lines, know all the best moments and when to expect them, while everyone else around you is left guessing.

And in 2026, given the number of book adaptations hitting our screens, you'd think we'd be spoiled for chances to say these six words.

Watch: A discussion on whether its okay for book adaptations to go off the rails. Post continues below.

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Is It Ok for Book Adaptations to go off the Rails? | The Quicky

So why, oh why, am I not saying them? Why am I sitting there, giddy and ready for my favourite fictional couples to come to life before my eyes, only to watch their stories morph into something else entirely?

All fantastic and valid questions.

Hollywood producers have caught on quickly to the fact girlies will be SAT for any kind of book adaptation. The film rights of our favourite books are being sold left, right and centre, some even before the books are released. That's how confident the producers are that they will be a success.

So, this is where I imagine they get a little excited. They start coming up with… new ideas. I shudder at the thought.

Because something is happening in the writer's room where things are turning a little too PG.

Where has all the sex gone? The spice? The va va voom? I mean, we're self-respecting women with needs. And no offence, but we're not here for the hand-holding.

First, it was People We Meet On Vacation. When Emily Henry's hot and tension-filled novel was brought to life by Emily Bader and Tom Blyth, it came close to being everything we imagined. But something was missing. That something is what one could argue is one of the most important parts of any friends-to-lovers relationship. The, you know, romp.

How are we supposed to believe that these two are completely meant for each other, that their world is falling into place and the stars are aligning, if all we get is a little fade to black after they finally kiss in the rain on that Spanish terrace?

Keeping a perfectly respectable distance. Image: Netflix.

The climax (ha) of the book is the night Poppy and Alex spend together when they finally reveal their true feelings for each other.

For that not to make it into the movie? May as well stay friends then…

Even more frustratingly, Henry told Variety they actually shot the sex scene, but it was the producers of the film who decided it ultimately wouldn't make the final cut.

"Here's what I'll say. I saw the scene as he shot it, and it was gorgeous and perfect," she said.

"I mean, I feel a little bit guilty because I went and told all of my friends, 'It's one of the sexiest sex scenes I've ever seen in my life.'… It was so, so good and raw and tender."

"So [when] Brett first brought [the idea of cutting the scene] to me and asked, how important is seeing the sex scene to you and to your readers? And I was like, I think it is kind of important, in a way, because it's something we're destigmatising, etc. But ultimately, my opinion would be that if it doesn't fit in the movie, then it doesn't work. It has to serve the larger movie."

Emily, I can't even look at you right now.

Then, one of my favourite romance reads, Every Summer After by Carley Fortune, was adapted by Prime Video as the series, Every Year After.

In the book, Percy and Sam have sex for the first time on his childhood bed, as he reads his anatomy textbook to her and points out the various joints in her body. I know that doesn't sound inherently hot, but trust me, it was a super lovely moment.

In the show, imagine my surprise when, every time there was merely an inkling of sexual innuendo, the camera panned above their heads. WHY AM I LOOKING AT THE HEADBOARD RIGHT NOW? PAN DOWN AT ONCE.

Once again in the book, this was a slow-burning relationship, the yearning was real. They finally hooked up after 10 years of pining and wanting and thinking of each other every day. It's fast and desperate and hungry outside in a car, because they just couldn't keep their hands off of each other for one second longer.

The show? You guessed it. A passionate kiss and then an immediate cut to snuggling half-dressed in the back seat. HELLO? WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

Bear hugs, yay! Image: Prime Video.

Once you start noticing this pattern, you won't be able to stop.

I thought back to some of my favourite book-to-screen relationships. Like Dex and Emma in the One Day Netflix series. Of course, the book isn't known for its spice, but the show wasn't shy when it came to Dex's sex life. Until, he finally confesses his love for Emma. Then, all of a sudden, we get what we've been waiting for in the way of a very abstract and stripped-back intimate sex scene. Finally! We rejoice. More! We say. Andddd that's all we get for the rest of the show. Oh, ok.

Don't get me wrong. I'm no intimacy coordinator and I'm sure these scenes are an absolute fine art to get right and live up to the books. So, I get it's probably just easier to skip them and leave it to the imagination.

But, let's be real there's a reason both Off Campus and Heated Rivalry shot to success so quickly. Yes, they did a whole lot right, but the one thing we were all talking about was the sex. It was hot. Creative. Honest. It was translated from book to screen in such an accurate way that it added an entirely different layer to their stories, one that doesn't feel as real without.

We're all grown-ups here, we know sex is an important part of relationships and we don't need that hidden from us on our screens. Maybe just don't watch it with your mum.

There's still hope, however.

Amazon MGM has confirmed that the upcoming production of Ali Hazelwood's The Love Hypothesis, starring Lili Reinhart and Tom Bateman, will be rated R.

You know what that means people!

More of this pls. Image: Prime Video.

For now, all we can do is wait and see if producers will hear our cries and stay true to the books for other upcoming adaptations such as Beach Read or Fourth Wing.

Who would've thought the book girlies would be relying on Michael B. Jordan to bring their favourite smutty fantasies to life?

Not me. Well, maybe.

Listen to the hosts of The Spill discuss the adaptation of The Love Hypothesis. Post continues below.

Feature image: Prime Video/Netflix.