Worst Pickup Lines In Movies

Romantic comedies can be entertaining and charming. Still, there are typically issues baked into the plot. Stalking behavior and a don't-take-no-for-an-answer approach are often framed as romantic gestures a man must make in pursuit of his love interest (rom-coms also almost exclusively present heterosexual relationships). 

There's another — less problematic, but still pretty cringe-worthy — element that frequently appears in rom-coms: the pickup line.

Pickup lines are rarely successful in film or otherwise. They're cheesy and sometimes just plain offensive. Others have been overused to the point of becoming trite. Corny come-ons are so unlikely to forge a connection with someone that many rom-coms instead use pickup lines for laughs. Some writers still miss the mark and include them as serious sentiments. Here's a breakdown of the worst pickup lines in movies, intentionally bad or otherwise.

Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher star in No Strings Attached as Emma and Adam, two friends who decide to begin a friends-with-benefits relationship. The two, of course, end up developing serious romantic feelings for one another.

Their casual relationship quickly develops many complications, including Emma initially rejecting a real relationship with Adam after he tells her he loves her. Emma eventually realizes she loves him as well, and the two get together after she confesses her feelings to him. After this grand moment, a blissful Emma (who is a doctor) says, "You give me premature ventricular contractions." And then, after a moment, she clarifies: "You make my heart skip a beat."

Since they've technically already gotten together, this isn't really a pickup line per se, but it sure sounds like one. It's meant to be endearing and reflect Emma's character, and it is slightly more original than many other pickup lines out there. Still, even Portman's charm can't entirely save this line from being wince-worthy.

In Hitch, Will Smith portrays Alex "Hitch" Hitchens, a self-described "date doctor" who makes his living teaching men how to successfully date women. When he meets a woman, Sara (Eva Mendes), who sees past his ruses, he realizes there's more to being in a relationship than the tricks he teaches.

Hitch first spots Sara sitting alone at a bar. He buys her a drink to take over to her and introduce himself. Before he reaches her, another man beats him to it with the same tactic. Hitch stands nearby to eavesdrop on their conversation, during which the man says, "I couldn't help but notice you look a lot like my next girlfriend."

This line is incredibly arrogant. What's more, in this case, it's almost the first thing he says to her, even before asking her name. It's clear he finds it both clever and forward, instead of pompous and unsurprising. In the context of the film, the viewer is definitely meant to interpret this pickup line as bad. Hitch smirks in amusement over the trite line. When professional wooer Hitch does get a moment to talk to Sara, his more straightforward, open approach is meant to be seen as refreshing; he is the romantic lead, after all.

Essentially an entire film about a man who uses pickup lines to meet women, The Pick-Up Artist follows Jack Jericho (Robert Downey Jr.), an elementary school teacher who spends his free time practicing pickup lines and then using them on various women. When he meets Randy (Molly Ringwald), she couldn't care less about the lines he throws at her, so of course he falls for her.

In the opening scene, Jack is practicing one of his lines in the mirror and says, "Did anyone ever tell you that you have the face of a Botticelli and the body of a Degas?" By referencing both an Italian Renaissance painter and a French Impressionist artist, Jack likely believes he's showing off his intellect while complimenting his target. If she doesn't get the references, that might just make him seem even smarter. His other lines include: "Has anyone ever said you have a magnificent smile and skin invented to be touched?" and "Did anyone ever tell you you're too good to be true?" Complimentary questions are Jack's M.O., apparently.

The Botticelli/Degas line is already pretentious, and knowing that he's probably used it more than once makes it all the more obnoxious. Randy isn't impressed and sarcastically retorts: "A tenth-grade art teacher."

Shallow Hal, directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly, introduces Hal (Jack Black). Just as the title tells you, Hal is very shallow. He has no interest in women who aren't supermodel-pretty. When a life coach sees just how shallow Hal is, he hypnotizes Hal so that when he looks at a woman, he sees her inner beauty manifested as her outer appearance. When he meets Rosemary (Gwyneth Paltrow), a 300-pound woman, he sees her as a much slimmer version of herself. 

Hal first spots Rosemary as she's walking into a department store. He promptly — and, well, somewhat creepily — follows her inside. She's shopping for underwear and holds up a pair in her size. From Hal's perspective, a skinny woman is holding up a large pair of underwear. He doesn't understand why, leading him to go up to her and say, "Building a parachute?"

It's an uneasy moment. Viewers are likely both cringing at Hal's obliviousness and sympathizing with Rosemary. As Hal continues to put his foot in his mouth, talking about how big the underwear is, Rosemary merely glares at him and walks away. Hal follows her, explaining that he didn't intend to offend and was just trying to be funny. Rosemary is confused, but accepts his apology. Still, Hal more than earned his way onto this "worst" list with that line.

In Bridesmaids, Annie (Kristen Wiig) is asked to be the maid of honor at her best friend Lillian's (Maya Rudolph) wedding. The bridal party experiences hijinks and mishaps in the days leading up to the wedding.

The group decides to go to Las Vegas for the bachelorette party. While on the plane, one of the bridesmaids, Megan (Melissa McCarthy, in her Oscar-nominated supporting role), sits next to a man, Jon (Ben Falcone), who she insists is an Air Marshal, despite Jon's protestations to the contrary. Megan then corners Jon as he's exiting the airplane's bathroom and says, "Hey, not-Air-Marshal Jon, you wanna get back in that restroom and not rest?"

The line turns out to be not nearly as effective as it is funny. Jon tries to get back to his seat. Megan continues to make suggestive comments and even lifts her leg, resting it on the wall to block his path in a hilariously bad attempt at seduction. Jon eventually makes it back to his seat, shutting down her string of pickup lines. But, as it turns out, Megan was right about Jon being an Air Marshal. Not only that, but the viewer also finds out at the end of the movie that Megan and Jon began a relationship. Still, we wouldn't recommend trying this tactic.