‘Love Hypothesis’ Star Tom Bateman Expertly Lifts and Carries Costar Lili Reinhart With 1 Hand

The wait for the anticipated adaptation of The Love Hypothesis is reaching a fever pitch, thanks to star Lili Reinhart’s latest set teaser.

Reinhart, 28, shared a nine-second clip of costar Tom Bateman masterfully picking her up and fireman-carrying her off into the distance. (The Riverdale alum is playing lead Olive Smith while also serving as a producer of the film.)

Bateman, who is set to play love interest Adam Carlsen, sported an all-black outfit as Reinhart wrapped an arm around his shoulder. Within minutes, Bateman, 36, hoisted Reinhart up and impressively balanced her entire weight on one arm.

The video quickly went viral on social media, with fans clamoring for more updates on The Love Hypothesis.

“This is how you promote a MOVIE,” one TikTok user wrote, with another fan adding, “‘How many times did you watch this?’ Yes.”

A third social media commenter commented, “You don’t understand how loud the gasp that just left my body was.”

Other fans couldn’t help but point out how similar Bateman’s lift was to a specific scene in Ali Hazelwood’s original novel.

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💘 #thelovehypothesis

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“Her heart skipped what felt like a dozen beats when Adam swept her up into a full bridal carry,” a passage reads. “She yelped, and he carried her to their [hotel] room, all because she had a blister on her pinkie toe. Without much of a choice, she closed her arms around his neck and sank against him, trying to make sure she’d survive if he decided to drop her. His hands were warm around her back and knee, forearms tight and strong.”

Reinhart confirmed in July that she was set to star as Olive, a PhD candidate opposite Adam’s biology professor, in the film adaptation of Hazelwood’s bestselling novel.

“👀🧬❤️ #thelovehypothesis,” she wrote via Instagram on July 16, sharing a selfie of herself wearing a lab coat and holding a copy of the book.

That same day, Reinhart uploaded a TikTok video of herself wandering through a bookstore.

“I’m looking for a book that could be turned into a really good romantic comedy,” she said, leading an off-camera friend to present her with a copy of Hazelwood’s book.

Reinhart added, “Oh, that’s good.”

Hazelwood also released a statement at the time, voicing her excitement about the upcoming film.

“Elizabeth Cantillon, Claire Scanlon and Lili Reinhart have all created, produced, or starred in works that I’m absolutely feral about, and I am beyond honored that they’re choosing to bring their talent to this project,” the author said in a July statement shared with Deadline. “Books and films are very different media, and I have complete trust in this brilliant team. I cannot wait to see the final product they’ll come up with. I hope they have as much fun filming as I had while writing the book.”

The Love Hypothesis also stars Rachel Marsh, Nicholas Duvernay, Jaboukie Young-White and Arty Froushan.