‘Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge’ Explores the Emotional Reality of Modern Dating

Today, Hinge unveils Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge, the third chapter of its ongoing It’s Funny We Met on Hinge campaign — a series celebrating the real, unexpected, and deeply human love stories of couples who met through the app. This latest chapter explores a different side of modern dating: who people were, and how they felt, before finding each other.

As Gen Z daters navigate confusion and uncertainty throughout their dating journeys, Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge reflects the honest emotions that often come before meaningful connection — skepticism, frustration, cautious optimism, and the temptation to give up altogether. Yet through candid storytelling from seven real couples, the campaign reminds daters that hope can coexist with the effort it takes to find connection.

Building on the first two chapters of It’s Funny We Met on Hinge, which challenged the binary of meeting either “in real life” or on a dating app, this new installment shifts the focus inward. It explores each person's emotional mindset before they met someone meaningful on Hinge. 

Across films, couples from the United States, United Kingdom, and — for the first time — Australia reflect on the winding, imperfect paths that ultimately brought them together:

• Abreale (she/they) felt stuck in repetitive situationships and was close to giving up on dating altogether, while Tyson (she/they) approached apps with low expectations. Based in New York City, they moved past small talk quickly, and their connection shifted both of them toward a more intentional, grounded approach to dating.
  • Their moment before Hinge: Tyson had visited the gallery where Abreale worked – the one day they weren’t there.
• Lukey (they/them) was holding out in dating for a serendipitous way of meeting someone, while Adonis (they/them) felt burned out and nearly ready to leave the apps. Living in New York City, they found a real relationship at a moment when both were still quietly holding onto hope.
  • Their moment before Hinge: They had been orbiting each other for years, living in the same neighborhood without ever meeting, and Adonis was close to deleting the app before scheduling a date with Lukey.
• Jada (she/her) had taken a full step back from dating to reset and gain clarity, while Taylor (they/them) was continuing to date but felt stuck in long, unfulfilling cycles. Living in New York City, their connection stood out for its directness from the start.
  • Their moment before Hinge: On their first Hinge date, they realized – mid-taxi ride – that they lived on the same block.
• Cece (they/them) was dating without finding depth, while Noah (he/him) treated dating apps as something to dip in and out of around a busy life. In Washington, D.C., meeting each other made dating feel more consistent, engaging, and meaningful.
  • Their moment before Hinge: They chatted briefly one night while out with mutual friends a month before matching.
• Nathan (he/him) and Maisy (she/her) were both coming off failed situationships and using Hinge casually. In London, what started as something light quickly developed into a committed relationship neither had anticipated.
  • Their moment before Hinge: They had already met at a party – but only Nathan remembered.
• Natalie (she/her) returned to dating after focusing on her career, while Imanol (he/him) felt discouraged by inconsistent experiences. Meeting in Vermont, their match stood out immediately – including both listing sober on their profiles – and became a strong connection. 
  • Their moment before Hinge: Imanol had once visited Natalie’s go-to Indian restaurant, despite him not being a local (yet).
• Brivini (she/her) entered dating for the first time with a clear intention toward a long-term relationship, while Yusuf (he/him) had stepped away from apps multiple times out of frustration. Based in Melbourne (Australia), their connection felt genuine from the beginning and quickly became something serious.
  • Their moment before Hinge: They had taken the same university course at different times of the day and worked at the same mall — both commuting from far away without ever crossing paths.

“Dating can be deeply challenging, and right now a lot of people are feeling that. There’s a real desire to see love stories that reflect the honesty of that experience,” said Tamika Young, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at Hinge (she/her). “Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge captures the emotional ups and downs of dating today, while still holding onto a sense of hope for what’s possible. When people see authentic stories and the conversations it sparks across communities, it helps them feel less alone in the process and reminds them that love can still happen.”

For Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge, Hinge embedded Gen Z voices throughout the creative and production process to ensure the work reflected the emotional honesty, pacing, and visual storytelling styles that resonate with young daters today. The films incorporate self-shot footage, archival moments from couples’ personal camera rolls, and a more textured visual language to deepen the authenticity of each story.

All three chapters of It’s Funny We Met on Hinge were developed in collaboration with creative collective Birthday and directed by filmmaker and photographer India Sleem, whose work centers on intimate, emotionally grounded storytelling from real people and communities.

“What’s been most exciting about working with Hinge across all three chapters of this campaign is watching the storytelling evolve in parallel with the realities of modern dating. It’s a natural progression, in a way, because these are real stories from real daters, delivered in their own words. No scripts, no cue cards," said said Corinna Falusi, Founder and CCO, Birthday. "We wanted the filmmaking to feel as honest as the stories themselves, so we leaned into real-life textures: self-shot footage, camera-roll moments, the visual language Gen Z already uses to tell their lives. Bringing real voices into the process wasn’t performative; it was essential to making the work feel genuinely theirs.”

The campaign will come to life through ad spots across streaming, cinema, and social media in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia beginning May 14, 2026 and running through July 2026.

Can’t Believe We Met on Hinge continues Hinge’s broader Designed To Be Deleted platform, which highlights the imperfect, one-of-a-kind stories of real couples who met through the app — encouraging daters as they pursue meaningful relationships of their own.

About Birthday

Birthday is a global creative collective that brings the right people together to build brands worth celebrating. Founded in Brooklyn by Corinna Falusi in partnership with Jamie Standen and Erik Norin, Birthday acts as a creative extension of brands’ in-house teams, plugging in seamlessly to deliver world-class strategy, creative, and production to launch campaigns that resonate and drive results. Learn more at Hellobirthday.com.

For more information about Birthday: Gabby Lott // Global PR Consultant // gabby@lottpr.com // +44 (0)7469758935

Production Credits

Production Credits HERE.