Marketing for Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's “The Drama” Criticized as 'Deeply Misaligned' with Movie's Shocking Plot
Marketing for Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's “The Drama” Criticized as 'Deeply Misaligned' with Movie's Shocking Plot
Tommy McArdleFri, April 3, 2026 at 4:04 PM UTC
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Robert Pattinson and Zendaya in The DramaCredit: A24 -
A non-profit organization has shared a "content warning" for Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's new movie The Drama
The Drama stars Zendaya and Pattinson as an engaged couple whose relationship is tested when her character reveals a dark secret from her past days before their wedding.
The Drama is in theaters now
WARNING: Spoilers for The Drama follow
Zendaya and Robert Pattinson's new movie The Drama is courting controversy as it opens in theaters.
March for Our Lives, the non-profit gun control organization founded by students in the wake of a 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, is speaking out against the film's content and marketing.
On Thursday, April 2, March for Our Lives shared a statement on Instagram in which the organization spoiled the movie's central premise while sharing a content warning that the movie "includes themes of a school shooting."
The Drama stars Zendaya, 29, and Pattinson, 39, as an engaged couple whose relationship is tested when her character reveals a dark secret from her past days before their wedding. More specifically, as the organization noted, Zendaya's character Emma confesses that as a teenager, she once planned a school shooting, but did not go through with the act.
"The film may be attempting to engage real questions about accountability and change, but A24's marketing does not meet it there," March for Our Lives wrote on Instagram. "With a subject this serious, especially in the U.S., that conversation cannot begin and end on screen. It has to carry through in how the film is presented."
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"We understand that art can provoke discomfort and use humor to approach difficult subjects," the statement added. "But when something like a school shooting is treated lightly or played for irony, it raises a deeper question: what kind of conversation is this meant to start? The filmmakers and actors have said this film will spark conversation. We hope it does. But on a topic that touches so many American lives, there is a responsibility to help shape that conversation in a productive direction, not just provoke it. The way this film has been marketed is deeply misaligned with the reality it engages. We expect better from A24 and the artists behind it."
A24 did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
March for Our Lives was founded by survivors of a 2018 school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, that killed 17 people. Some of those founders remain active in American politics, including Cameron Kasky, who is currently running for Congress in New York, and David Hogg, who worked as a vice chair for the Democratic National Committee as recently as 2025.
Robert Pattinson and Zendaya promoting The DramaCredit: A24
Musicians Aly & AJ commented on March for Our Lives' post in support of its content warning. "Couldn’t agree more," the pair, who survived a mass shooting outside one of their concerts in 2022, wrote on Instagram. "The marketing made us sick when we found out the plot twist."
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The Drama is in theaters now.For more information on safe firearm storage and the most effective ways to protect children from unsecured firearms, visit BeSMARTforkids.org.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”