Red, White & Royal Blue Movie Vs Book: 6 Major Characters, Sub-Plots That Did Not Make It To The Film
Loved every bit of the film!
The movie adaptation of Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue is out, and it is easily my favourite romantic movie of the year so far! Starring Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine in the roles of Alex Claremont-Diaz and Henry, the Prince of Wales respectively, the makers of the film had a huge task to successfully of making an adaptation that would be just as swoony, sexy and mushy as the book was. And well, director Mathew López has managed to achieve the feat because if he would not, he would be answerable to the loyal lovers of the novel.
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It is quite understandable that adapting a 350-400-page long book into a two-hour movie is not an easy job but Red, White & Royal Blue sails seamlessly through this transition. But there were some major characters and plot changes that the makers did decide to make in the film which I was not expecting. So, if you have loved the book, you ought to know the six major things from the book you will not get to see in the film.
1. Bye-bye to Alex and Henry’s siblings
In the book, Alex’s sister, June, and Henry’s sister, Princess Bea, played a major role in supporting their brothers. June is an aspiring journalist who wants the world to know her as more than the daughter of the USA’s President, and she is omitted from the movie. Whereas Princess Bea had a cocaine addiction in the book but in the film, she’s squeaky clean.
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2. Alex figuring out his sexuality
So, Henry knew from an early age that he is gay but Alex spirals into an existential crisis after Henry kisses him because he likes the kiss, and he was not sure he was supposed to. He figures out his sexuality with the help of June in the book but this arc does not reflect in the movie.
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3. Alex’s mother’s reaction to him coming out
Of course, the President of America is extremely supportive of her son when he comes out as bisexual to her. But the way this scene is fleshed out in the book is very different from the way it is shown in the film.
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4. Alex and Henry’s emails
The love letters Alex and Henry wrote to each other in the book were a major part of their relationship as they showed how they did not let the literal distance between them affect their relationship. But these, too, were heavily edited in the film.
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5. No Queen of England in the film
The book has the Queen of England who opposes Henry and Alex’s relationship because she believes princes cannot be gay. But in the film, it is the King of England who harbours the same emotions.
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6. Politics not highlighted in the film
Casy McQuiston’s book sheds much light on the political campaigns planned by Alex’s mother to be re-elected. But all that bit is simply not highlighted in the film. Also, there’s a major twist in the book involving a gay politician and that bit is omitted as well from the Red, White & Royal Blue movie.
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Also read: Red, White & Royal Blue Review: Taylor Zakhar Perez, Nicholas Galitzine Give Us The Swooniest Romance In A Gush-Worthy Adaptation
But despite these changes, the film does not lose its essence because the makers made sure they focused on Alex and Henry’s story. It kept the audience’s attention on them and not on the sub-plots which would be better fleshed out if the book was adapted into a series.
Catch the ‘swooniest’ romance, Red, White & Royal Blue, on Prime Video.
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