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College is supposed to be a reset button for those who spent their high school days feeling like outsiders. Freshmen nervously step onto campuses carrying hope that they’ll do well and belong. Then, unexpectedly, an instant connection arrives. They meet another student who seems to understand every reference and laughs at the same absurdities. Finally, there’s someone who just “gets” them. There’s a sense of excitement because here is a person who could be their new best friend.
Roommates (2026) captures that intoxicating beginning before it sours into something more complicated.
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Spoilers Ahead
Directed by Chandler Levack and produced by Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison banner, the Netflix comedy stars Sadie Sandler as Devon, a shy architecture major fresh out of a friendless high school, and Chloe East as Celeste, the “cool girl” counterpart. Their story unfolds through the wry narration of Dr. Schilling (Sarah Sherman), the Dean of Student Life, who recounts the saga as a cautionary tale to two current freshmen already at each other’s throats.
Devon and Celeste meet during pre-semester camp, where shared eye-rolls at awkward activities spark immediate rapport. Devon, eager for her first real friendship, proposes they room together at Walton University. Celeste agrees with enthusiasm, but she has one requirement: she wants a “ride-or-die.”
Their early days carry the thrill of building a chosen sisterhood, yet boundaries begin to blur. “Borrowed” clothes escalate to Celeste persuading Devon to use her father’s emergency credit card for a lavish spring break in Panama City. Devon swallows her discomfort and obliges, drawn in by Celeste’s charm and her own longing for acceptance.
More red flags soon surface. During midterms, Devon offers to help a sick Celeste by writing a paper for her. When she returns to their dorm, however, she discovers a healthy Celeste being physically intimate with a classmate—an encounter that results in Devon’s architecture project being broken. You also begin to realize that Celeste constantly one-ups Devon in ways both subtle and overt, especially when she saves the day during a chaotic Thanksgiving incident while purposefully making Devon look irresponsible.
Devon’s budding crush on her TA, Michael (Billy Bryk), also adds fuel to the fire. Throughout the film, he plays the flirty (albeit stalkerish), supportive “nice guy.” But the Panama City trip reveals the truth: Michael has been sleeping with Celeste behind Devon’s back, and Celeste is actually the daughter of the CEO of Staples, despite her earlier claims that her father was a janitor. Yikes.
Motivated by revenge, Devon—assisted by her younger brother Alex (Aidan Langford)—exposes Celeste’s behavior and extremely wealthy background during a presentation in front of the student body. She also rightfully calls out Michael, informing their professor that TAs shouldn’t inappropriately use freshmen contact information as a personal dating service.
In retaliation, Celeste visits Alex’s high school and outs him. Devon is livid when she finds out, and the final confrontation between the two women literally sets their dorm ablaze.
The Real Issue
In spite of Celeste’s chaotic manipulation, she eventually reveals that she fabricated a humble backstory to cope with her real baggage: her mother has Alzheimer’s, and her father has remarried a woman only two years older than her. Celeste resents Devon for “rubbing her perfect family in her face,” while Devon responds that had Celeste simply opened up, she would have supported her—because “that’s what best friends do.”
But the lack of communication goes both ways. Devon’s prior inability to voice her concerns curdles into a resentment that makes the situation unsalvageable. It’s a relatable portrayal of conflict. Even more so when the film ends without the two reconciling.
Indicted for arson, Devon lands in prison for a few months where she meets her cellmate and future best friend/business partner, Louise (Megan Thee Stallion). Celeste is expelled from two more schools before her father cuts her off financially, forcing her to work a retail job at Staples. As for Michael, he opens a restaurant that fails because his paella tastes bad, and he finds himself bald at the ripe age of twenty-five.
At its core, Roommates will resonate with those who have experienced an intense friendship fallout. When unchecked envy and hidden bitterness poison a sisterhood, they can burn bridges. Still, the film ends on an optimistic note: once the grief over a lost friend settles and the lessons are learned, space opens for sincere connections that honor boundaries from the start.
And if nothing else, the whole mess makes for one wild story to tell.
Photos: NETFLIX (via Website)
Frequently Asked Questions
Roommates is a Netflix coming-of-age comedy that explores the volatile friendship between two college freshmen, Devon and Celeste, as their chosen sisterhood devolves into destructive manipulation and arson.
The film stars Sadie Sandler as the shy architecture student Devon and Chloe East as the charismatic “cool girl” Celeste, with Sarah Sherman portraying the narrator, Dr. Schilling.
The relationship sours due to blurred boundaries, Celeste’s constant one-upping behavior, lies about their backgrounds, and the discovery that Celeste was secretly dating the same person as Devon.
Their unresolved resentments and lack of communication escalate until a final confrontation leads them to literally set their dorm room on fire, resulting in serious real-world consequences.
The film ends without the pair reconciling. Devon finds a new path after prison, while Celeste faces financial ruin, highlighting the lasting impact of toxic, unchecked envy on relationships.
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