Manchester romcom Finding Emily is currently one of the best-reviewed films of 2026 so far

A new romcom that is set, was filmed in, and actually romanticises Manchester is soon to be released overseas.

If you haven’t had the chance to see Finding Emily for yourself yet, the film is set in Manchester at the fictional Manchester City University and tells the story of a lovesick musician, played by Spike Fearn, who meets his dream girl named Emily on a night out.

Sadly though, he ends up with the wrong phone number for Emily, and so teams up with a driven psychology student, played by Angourie Rice, in a bid to find her.

Together, the unlikely duo spark a hilarious campus-wide frenzy that tests their own hearts and ambitions along the way.

The film – which is directed by Alicia MacDonald, based on a screenplay by Rachel Hirons, and produced by Working Title Films – is filled with notable local locations dotted throughout, from Manchester Central Library and Piccadilly Records, to Canal Street, the Northern Quarter, and even the Emmeline Pankhurst statue in St Peter’s Square featured for all to see.

Oh, and not to mention, if you keep your eyes peeled when watching the trailer, you can even see a small clip of Stockport band Blossoms playing a gig in there too.

Finding Emily was released here in the UK back in May, and received overwhelmingly positive reviews from fans and critics, including by The Manc Group team when we were lucky enough to see it at the Manchester premiere.

And ahead of its international release this week (Friday 26 August), those reviews have remained as glowing as ever.

In fact, over on major film review platform Rotten Tomatoes, the film stands at 95% on the ‘tomatometer’, meaning it’s one of the highest-rated romcoms of the decade so far.

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That also makes it one of the best-reviewed movies of the entire year, in addition to its record score for the genre itself, as only two other films released in 2026 have retained scores higher than it – thrilling Hong Kong action film, The Furious, with a score of 98%, and the uniquely hilarious Olivia Wilde directed and starring, The Invite, with a score of 97%.

Unfortunately, box office projections for Finding Emily are pretty low for the weekend over in the US, as it has to contend with continuing big-hitters like Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey.

But it says a lot that this fun-filled original romcom set in our incredible city is more critically acclaimed than those two blockbusters based on existing IP.

Read more:

• Trailer released for new romcom Finding Emily set and filmed all across Manchester
• Finding Emily – the hit new romcom that really romanticises Manchester | Review
• Famous films and TV shows that were shot around Manchester

Critics say Finding Emily ‘makes a tried-and-true formula feel brand new’, and to us, that’s about as good as you can get.

Finding Emily is no longer in UK cinemas, so if you would like to check it out, you can currently buy or rent the film on Amazon Prime UK, the Sky Store, or the Virgin Media Store.

Featured Image – Matt Squire / © 2026 FOCUS FEATURES LLC