It is 2020 and abortion is still legal thanks to Roe v. Wade—legislation that Republicans would love to terminate—but laws and restrictions still vary from state to state with dozens of states, often the conservative Red States, still aiming to make it difficult or next to impossible to safely and legally end a pregnancy. Enter “Unpregnant,” a new HBO MAX movie from producer Greg Berlanti (shepherd of The CW’s Arrowverse), that comes on the heels of Georgia’s six-week abortion ban being struck down and the state’s abortion laws being under siege ever since the Trump administration took over.
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The film stars Haley Lu Richardson (“Columbus,” “Support The Girls”), as a 17-year-old Missouri teen who has gotten pregnant— a development that threatens to end her dreams of matriculating at an Ivy League college and the career that will follow. Of course, in her state of Missouri, abortion is illegal (which is not the case in real life, but these states always try to upend and amend their laws). Barbie Ferreira co-stars as her best friend who helps her and goes on a road trip to get her abortion.
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Produced alongside PICTURESTART’s Erik Feig (“La La Land”), Lucy Kitada (“The Babysitters Club”) and Jessica Switch (“Nerve”), “Unpregnant” is directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg, a filmmaker who has helmed episodes of “Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis” and “The Mindy Project.” Here’s the official synopsis:
In Unpregnant, seventeen-year-old Veronica (Haley Lu Richardson) never thought she’d want to fail a test—that is, until she finds herself staring at a piece of plastic with a blue plus. With a promising college-bound future now disappearing before her eyes, Veronica considers a decision she never imagined she’d have to make. This never-taken-lightly decision leads her on a 1000 mile hilarious road trip to New Mexico over three days with her ex-best friend, Bailey (Barbie Ferreira) where they discover sometimes the most important choice you’ll make in life is who your friends are.
“Unpregnant” premieres September 10 on HBO Max. Watch the first trailer below and feel free to think about November and those who are always trying to regulate your body and your life decisions—or those of your loved ones—while you do so.
