Noah and Joanne hold coffee mugs while talking in Nobody Wants This The relatable new romantic comedy on Netflix, Nobody Wants This, was actually inspired by a real-life love story. With Nobody Wants This’ cast led by Kristen Bell and Adam, the show chronicles the cross-cultural romantic relationship between the two characters. Given that some aspects of Nobody Wants This seem too good to be true, audiences might be wondering if Noah and Joanne’s relationship has a basis in real life.

Nobody Wants This debuted to great reviews, with an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 93%. The show includes elements and themes such as being in a romantic relationship with someone who has different life views that audiences can relate to. Nobody Wants This explores the difficulties of romantic relationships without being too preachy.

Nobody Wants This Was Inspired By Erin Foster’s Real-Life Love Story

Erin Foster Converted To Judaism Before Marrying Her Husband

Joanne and Noah sit at the table in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Esther looks confused in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Bina eats off the charcuterie board in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Noah looks worried in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Bina smiles while sitting outside in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Joanne and Noah sit at the table in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Esther looks confused in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Bina eats off the charcuterie board in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Noah looks worried in Nobody Wants This episode 9 Bina smiles while sitting outside in Nobody Wants This episode 9

Nobody Wants This was inspired by the show’s creator, Erin Foster and her husband, Simon Tikhman’s real-life love story. Foster, who got the idea for Nobody Wants This when she was converting to Judaism, wanted the show to be a love letter to her marriage. Noah from Nobody Wants This was actually based on Foster’s husband. Speaking on her podcast The World’s First Podcast, Foster said she wanted the male lead in the series to be “emotionally available, chivalrous, old-fashioned … but also really funny and confident.” Noah’s upbringing in the show also mirrors Tikhman’s life as he is the son of Jewish-Russian immigrants (via People).

Although there are several things from Foster’s life that trickled down into the series, there are some differences between Noah and Joanne’s relationship and Foster and Tikhman’s relationship. For one, Foster and Tikhman did not have that much of a pushback from their family and friends in the way that Noah and Joanne did in the show. Additionally, Tikhman is a music executive in real life, not a rabbi. Prior to marrying Tikhman, Foster converted to Judaism, which is something Joanne struggled with at the end of Nobody Wants This (via Huffington Post).

What Nobody Wants This Copied From Foster And Tikhman’s Relationship

Erin Had Some Reservations About Her Relationship With Tikhman

Noah and Joanne kiss in Nobody Wants This

There are some things that Nobody Wants This lifted straight from Foster’s real life. In episode six of the 10-part series titled “The Ick”, Noah finally gets to meet Joanne’s parents. Determined to impress them, he shows up in his gym kit with a bunch of oversized sunflowers. Noah’s attempt at impressing Joanne’s parents gives her “the ick,” a term her and her sister coined to depict when something a romantic partner does makes her lose interest.

He showed up clutching oversized sunflowers, which made Foster rethink their relationship.

Something similar actually happened to Foster and Tikhman when he met her parents. He showed up clutching oversized sunflowers, which made Foster rethink their relationship. In an interview with New York Magazine, Foster recalled the event saying, “The flowers were so long, and they kept falling over. Sitting there, I was like, ‘Well, if someone cares this much, then that feels like a weakness,’” (via Vulture). Seeing as the show ended with Noah and Joanne’s fate in the air, it will be interesting to see what else Nobody Wants This season 2 will use from Foster’s real-life love story.