Iconic ’90s Movie Couples We Can’t Forget

The ’90s movies really knew how to sell romance in a fun and dramatic way, but, of course, a lot of them were full of cheesy lines, overused tropes, and some messed-up situations involving a door in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Then again, all that manufactured drama and unique plot twists are exactly why we still love to rewatch these old gems.

Here are some iconic ’90s movie couples we still adore.

Josie and Sam in Never Been Kissed

In Never Been Kissed, Drew Barrymore plays Josie, a young copy editor who goes undercover at a high school, while Sam, played by Michael Vartan, just happens to be a kind, thoughtful English teacher. This relationship is obviously tough because of the teacher-student taboo, even though Josie is actually 25. The movie walks a very fine rom-com line, but Barrymore’s knows how to work a camera and pretty much charms her way through the story without making it weird. The big baseball-field kiss was extremely cheesy, but that’s kinda the point. Josie finally gets the romantic moment, and Sam, well, he’s just glad to be there.

Vivian and Edward in Pretty Woman

Few ’90s couples are as instantly recognizable as Vivian and Edward. Pretty Woman could have been a dry story about a wealthy businessman and a woman from a completely different world, but Julia Roberts and Richard Gere turned it into something special. Viv is funny, mouthy, and full of personality, while Edward is pretty much the opposite of that. Together, they soften each other, and it’s just incredibly enjoyable to see how they influence one another, no pun intended. The movie is a fairy tale, there’s no denying that, but Roberts and Gere sell that fairy tale so well that it became one of the defining romances of the 90s.

Kathleen and Joe in You’ve Got Mail

Kathleen and Joe meet online and slowly fall in love through raunchy messages, never realizing they already hate each other in real life. Kathleen owns a small bookstore, while Joe’s got that big family-owned bookstore extravaganza. Their love story faces several challenges. After all, he is the reason her little shop is about to go out of business. But by the time Kathleen realizes Joe and her mysterious online crush are the same person, the movie has already convinced us that these two were always meant to find each other.