Buddy comedies are a tried and true genre of film, one that has the potential to spark real joy with audiences. A recent addition that came this year was One Of Them Days, which is quickly becoming a fan favorite. The movie is streaming now for those with a Netflix subscription, and after watching, there was one line of dialogue I can't believe that Keke Palmer actually said.
CinemaBlend's One Of Them Days review praised its leading performers, Keke Palmer and SZA, and the pair has excellent chemistry and comedic timing throughout its 97-minute runtime. I'm a huge fan of them both, and think that Palmer is one of the great versatile talents of her generation. But, around halfway through the movie when running into her crush, her character, Dreux, laments:
I can't do this, my ass has no charisma.
I basically spit my drink out in this moment. Keke Palmer is perhaps the most charismatic actor in Hollywood right now. She's worked across all genres of film, hosted game shows, judged Max's series Legendary, and basically every interview she does is fodder for memes. Palmer is a charming soundbite machine, so I simply couldn't suspend my disbelief that she was lacking charisma in One of Them Days.
To be clear, SZA's performance is stellar in this buddy comedy as well. On top of being an acclaimed recording artist (those albums have gotten me through countless workouts), she's also able to volley with Palmer. We spend basically every single scene of One of Them Days with their characters, Dreux and Alyssa, as they go through a variety of hijinks trying to make their rent.
Palmer's natural charisma is what makes her such a soundbite machine whenever she's doing press. From her famously saying "sorry to this man" when unable to recognize Dick Cheney, to her meme-worthy appearances on Hot Ones, the 31 year-old multi-hyphenate is endlessly watchable. Most recently, she was promoting One of Them Days and proclaimed Wicked's "Defying Gravity" as a "slave hymn." Just check out this compilation of her viral moments:
Just try to describe her without using the word "charismatic." And, all of these clips are just Palmer being herself, so this doesn't even begin to cover what she's able to bring to the screen while playing a character.
While Keke Palmer is obviously funny, she's been able to show off her range thanks to her work in TV and film. This includes Jordan Peele's acclaimed horror movie Nope, starring opposite Jennifer Lopez in Hustlers, and voice work in Netflix's Human Resources.
We'll just have to see where her charisma takes her next. One of Them Days was part of the 2025 movie release list, but is streaming now on Netflix
