Movie review
September 10, 2020 · 104 min · PG-13
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
Unpregnant is a 2020 HBO Max road-trip comedy-drama in which a 17-year-old Missouri girl learns she is pregnant and travels with her estranged best friend to New Mexico for an abortion after discovering her home state requires parental consent. The story centers on the legal barriers to the procedure, the protagonists' friendship, and a parallel queer subplot. It explicitly frames restrictive state laws and pro-life opposition as oppressive obstacles while portraying the abortion itself as a straightforward, positive choice with minimal regret or conflict, and it includes visible lesbian representation through one lead character's coming-out moment and romantic encounter.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Unpregnant.
Woke representation / casting
Visible lesbian identity for Bailey with on-screen kiss, romantic subplot, and explicit "We're gay and pregnant!" affirmation; queer elements are audience-visible and tied to the GLAAD-nominated portrayal, though not the dominant plot driver and without forced mismatches to the story world.
Woke political dialogue
Multiple scenes directly reference Missouri's parental-consent abortion law as an unjust barrier versus permissive New Mexico rules; characters affirm the protagonist's choice as valid, unproblematic, and worth pursuing at any cost.
Identity-driven story themes
The central narrative engine is a teenager's assertion of reproductive autonomy and female friendship against legal, romantic, and familial obstacles framed as restrictive and patriarchal; a parallel queer self-discovery arc reinforces identity affirmation.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Missouri abortion restrictions and pro-life activists are cast as primary antagonists and oppressive forces, with religious opponents shown as fanatical extremists (including an interference/kidnap attempt); the film aligns with activist framing of conservative state and religious institutions as undue barriers to women's bodily autonomy.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Clear review-bombing and accusations of pro-abortion propaganda from anti-choice viewers; conservative criticism specifically called out anti-Christian stereotypes and the comedic trivialization of abortion, though the backlash stayed niche and online rather than escalating into major mainstream outrage.
Creator track record context
Director explicitly advocated normalizing abortion as a response to rights "under attack"; lead producer Greg Berlanti has a documented pattern of centering high-profile LGBTQ+ stories and characters across film and television.
Production
