Lauren Miller Rogen's Babies Debuts as Witty Take on Childless Adulthood

3:17 PM ETDeveloping

Entertainment Desk

In Short: Lauren Miller Rogen's comedy Babies explores the complexities of choosing not to have children.

Lauren Miller Rogen's comedy Babies offers a witty and heartfelt look at the challenges of being childless in a society that often pressures individuals to have children. The film, written and directed by Miller Rogen, stars Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen as a couple, Aaron and Annie, who are frequently asked about their decision not to have kids.

Miller Rogen, who has faced numerous questions about her own choice not to have children, draws from personal experiences to create a relatable and humorous narrative. In one particularly poignant scene, Rogen's character Aaron compares the opportunity to have children to receiving a Baskin Robbins sample, a moment that encapsulates the film's blend of humor and frustration.

The film's exploration of the decision not to have children is both timely and relevant, especially given Miller Rogen's personal journey. Her mother's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease in 2017, which led to her death in 2020, has deeply influenced her perspective on the subject. This personal connection adds a layer of emotional depth to the film.

Miller Rogen's choice to work with Anna Kendrick as her onscreen surrogate was a natural fit. Kendrick, who has known the couple since working with Seth Rogen on 50/50, was drawn to the character's complexity. 'She has this very special ability to balance humor and love and snark in a way that I wanted that character to embody,' Kendrick says, calling it a 'dream come true' to accept the role.

Babies is not just a comedy; it delves into deeper questions about life choices and the uncertain state of society. The film's exploration of these themes, combined with its sharp humor and relatable characters, makes it a compelling watch for audiences who appreciate a thoughtful and entertaining take on the complexities of modern life.

What's still developing

“What f*cking business is it of yours?” Rogen asks in one voice-over, a question he’s likely been holding in during many an interview over the years.
As her camera pans past the vibrant celebration, “ Babies ” writer/director Lauren Miller Rogen plunges us directly into Annie’s inner monologue, working through her complicated feelings about children and parenthood with her charmingly prickly humor.
That is the thorny question raised in Lauren Miller Rogen’s Babies, an astute charmer about a happy, supportive Los Angeles couple ( Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen ) who, after 17 years of togetherness, begin wondering if they might be missing a bouncing bundle of something in their lives.
Drawing from aspects of her own life, Miller, in her second directorial effort following 2018’s Like Father, taps into a reservoir of considerable relevance here, finding plenty of fertile comic ground in the subject matter but never at the expense of weightier questions surrounding life choices, human existence and the uncertain state of society.
With an especially terrific Kendrick serving as Miller’s onscreen surrogate, Babies should have no problem finding an adoring audience when it lands in theaters via Roadside Attractions and Vertical sometime next year.
The consideration first presents itself at a Fourth of July pool party where Annie (Kendrick) and Aaron (Rogen) feel outnumbered by all the family units surrounding them.
Miller Rogen’s mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s when she was just 55; she died in 2020 at 68 years old. (The couple cofounded the nonprofit Hilarity for Charity in 2012 to fund research, advocacy, and care for families affected by the disease.) As Nora Ephron famously said, everything is copy.
Miller Rogen started a Notes doc on her phone in 2021 to keep track of the idea that sprung from the situation, eventually cramming it full enough that, in a frenzy of writing between January and April 2025, a script came out.

Sources

The Hollywood Reporterlink