Rosaline takeaway: How is the Hulu film different from the original Romeo and Juliet? (Spoilers)

Rosaline Capulet is a fictional character from William Shakespeare’s well-known tragedy, Romeo and Juliet. The niece of Lord Capulet, she us introduced to as Romeo's first love interest in the play.

Now, Karen Maine’s film, Rosaline, which was released on Hulu on Friday, October 14, 2022, has captured Romeo’s ex-lover in a different light. But the question remains, how different?

Rosaline’s character in Romeo and Juliet is a fleeting one that is only referred to and never seen. She was used as a dramatic device to drive forward the plot, which began with Romeo’s infatuation for her, followed by him falling for Juliet.

Maine’s film gives its eponymous character a make-over, not only placing her as the driving force of the story, but also making her play a crucial role in reuniting Romeo and Juliet.

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Rosaline on Hulu: This Karen Maine-directorial departs from the original Romeo and Juliet in multiple ways

Rosaline is the protagonist in Karen Maine’s film, and is portrayed as Romeo’s ex-lover. Her actions drive the entire plot, but Maine is careful to retain the character's main job in the film, which is to create a situation where Romeo and Juliet meet.

While the text largely sidelined Rosaline and did not see her retaliate and plot to create friction between the new lovers, the character in the film is a stark contrast to this.

More than a mere prop

In Romeo and Juliet, Rosaline’s unrequited love for Romeo became the reason behind his defection to Juliet. According to the website No Sweat Shakespeare, neither had Romeo met Rosaline in person, nor was the latter aware of his existence. She is simply a reference point in the text, and nothing more.

She exists merely for plot convenience, since it is while trying to catch a glimpse of her at a Capulet gathering that Romeo spots Juliet instead.

Rosaline’s interests and prospects went unexplored in the text.

However, she is a more fleshed-out character in the film. Not only does she aspire to be a cartographer, she also has her own romantic interest in the story. In placing her as a central character in the story, the makers successfully turned the plot into a light-hearted one, as opposed to the heavy storytelling of the original tragedy.

Speaking about the same, in an interview with Disney, the film's scriptwriter Michael H. Weber said:

"Telling the story from Rosaline’s perspective allowed us to make this a comedy, rather than a tragedy like the original Romeo and Juliet."

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Count Paris is gay

Count Paris is the kin of Prince Escalus, who is wealthy and seeks to marry Juliet in the text. When he initially approached Juliet’s father, Lord Capulet, for her hand in marriage, Capulet was hesitant due to his daughter’s young age. However, he allowed Paris to woo Juliet and invite him to the family ball.

Later, Juliet refused Paris’ advances as well as his proposal, but her parents threatened to disown her if she declined the marriage.

In the film, Count Paris is depicted as being gay. He is an outcast who roams around with his other outcast friend, Rosaline.

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Dario is a new addition to the lore of Romeo and Juliet

Dario in the film (Image via IMDb)

A new addition to the world of Romeo and Juliet was Dario, who was introduced in the film as a potential suitor for Rosaline. While no character named Dario is present in Shakespeare’s text, he featured in the film as the titular character's aid as she embarked on her journey to fix Romeo and Juliet’s relationship.

Rosaline and Dario eventually end up getting romantically involved.

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In brief, about the film

The official synopsis of the film reads:

"Rosaline is a comedic take on William Shakespeare’s tragic romance Romeo and Juliet, told from the perspective of Juliet’s cousin Rosaline, who is also Romeo’s recent love interest. Heartbroken when Romeo meets Juliet and begins to pursue her, Rosaline schemes to foil their romance and win Romeo back."

The story is based on Rebecca Serle’s book When You Were Mine, and was adapted for the screen by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber.

The film features Kaitlyn Dever in the titular role. Other key cast members include Kyle Allen as Romeo, Isabela Merced as Juliet, Sean Teale as Dario, Spencer Stevenson as Paris, Christopher McDonald as Lord Capulet, and Nicholas Rowe as Lord Montague.

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Rosaline is currently streaming on Hulu.