Newness follows Martin, a divorced pharmacist in Los Angeles, and Gabi, a physical therapist from Spain. They meet through a dating app after separate bad hookups and quickly fall in love. Their fear of boredom leads them to try an open relationship, where both partners can have sex with other people. The story becomes a tense romance about jealousy, grief, secrecy, and the wish to keep love exciting.
The film makes casual sex and an open relationship central parts of Martin and Gabi's romance. It presents open dating as a real choice instead of treating monogamy as the only possible form of love. The couple watches other people flirt, joins group sexual encounters, and struggles when outside partners create deeper feelings. The story then shows the damage caused by jealousy and dishonesty, while Martin and Gabi move back toward a more committed bond.
Community feedback
Was our 22% Woke rating accurate?
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Newness.
Woke representation / casting
Not present. The lead pair is an American man and a Spanish woman in modern Los Angeles. The film does not make race, gender, or diversity-first casting part of its story or marketing.
0%
Woke political dialogue
Not present. Characters discuss dating apps, privacy, instant pleasure, and love. The film has no clear political, DEI, or identity-politics speeches.
0%
Identity-driven story themes
The film makes an open relationship a central part of Martin and Gabi’s romance. The couple treats sex with other people as a way to keep love fresh, and they talk openly about desire. The story repeatedly tests that choice through hookups, threesomes, jealousy, and a serious outside attachment. The couple finally reconciles after Martin admits that he never wanted the open arrangement, so the film questions sexual rules without fully endorsing them.
32%
Western institutional / cultural critique
The film questions the traditional idea that a couple must be sexually exclusive. It presents open dating as a possible answer to boredom, but it also shows jealousy, secrecy, and hurt. It does not attack religion, family life, men, capitalism, or other Western institutions.
14%
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant. The film is an original story about Martin and Gabi. It does not alter known characters, canon, or historical figures.
0%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Not present. Public discussion centers on sex, open relationships, dating apps, and the film’s quality. Reviewed coverage shows no notable anti-woke or anti-DEI campaign about the title.
0%
Creator track record context
The cached creator records give Drake Doremus 0/100 and Ben York Jones 22/100. The producers and casting professionals are also scored from 0 to 28/100 and have no documented activism or DEI advocacy. The team therefore adds only a low creator track record context signal.
12%
Production
Movie · 2019
England, early 20th century. The future writer and philologist John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892-1973) and three of his schoolmates create a strong bond between them as they share…
Movie · 2017
The story of four characters whose lives intertwine amid the hustle and bustle of the Coney Island amusement park in the 1950s: Ginny, an emotionally volatile former actress now…
Movie · 2018
The coming-of-age tale of 16-year-old Lina Vilkas who is deported to Siberia amid Stalin's reign of terror in the Baltic region during WWII.
Movie · 2016
Set during the last days of the Ottoman Empire, a love triangle develops between Mikael, a brilliant medical student, the beautiful and sophisticated artist Ana, and Chris, a…
Movie · 2017
A brilliant but impulsive young surgeon spirals into self-destruction after a painful breakup, struggling to cope with love, loss, and the consequences of his own temper.
Movie · 2018
German artist Kurt Barnert has escaped East Germany and now lives in West Germany, but is tormented by his childhood under the Nazis and the GDR regime.
Movie · 2025
Based on a true story, two down-on-their-luck musicians form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band, proving it's never too late to find love and follow your dreams.
Movie · 2016
Mia, an aspiring actress, serves lattes to movie stars in between auditions and Sebastian, a jazz musician, scrapes by playing cocktail party gigs in dingy bars, but as success…
