By Livy Beaner // SWNS
Do cheesy movie lines really have Americans at “hello?” New research suggests that they do.
That’s according to a survey of 2,000 U.S. adults, which aimed to highlight the cringiest, most quote-worthy movie lines, and found that 63% are more likely to remember the cheesy kind than the serious kind.
“Jerry Maguire” was voted as the king of cheese, with “you had me at ‘hello’’’ ranking as America’s favorite cheesy movie line.
That was followed by Patrick Swazye’s iconic “I'm scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life the way I feel when I'm with you,” line from “Dirty Dancing” and “I want the fairytale,” from “Pretty Woman”.
“We’ll always have Paris,” from “Casablanca” and "I'd rather die tomorrow than live a hundred years without knowing you,” from “Pocahontas” rounded out the top five.
In fact, corny, cheesy movies are twice as popular as their serious, dramatic counterparts (45% vs 22%).
A survey conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Daiya, dairy-free cheese brand, revealed that Americans don’t just want some cheese in their movies— they also want it on their plate.
Almost two-thirds of Americans (63%) consider themselves “cheese-obsessed.” Sixty-two percent “always” or “often” enjoy their favorite movie with food.
This devotion to cheese runs so deep that respondents are likely to be snacking on pizza (46%), nachos (33%) and mac and cheese (13%).
Almost two in five (39%) say their favorite person to enjoy a cheesy meal and cheesy movie with is their partner.
Almost half (47%) admit that they consider their partner to be “cheesy” and even more than that, 61% consider it to be an attractive trait.
“Along with rom-coms, the results back-up what most of us already know: pizza is a staple in American households,” said John Kelly, Chief Marketing Officer at Daiya. “We want all eaters to enjoy pizza, regardless of their dietary preferences. So whether you prefer cheesy movies, or just cheesy foods, we have options to win over everyone with shockingly good dairy-free choices.”
The survey also explored the correlations between favorite slice and movie preferences. The fan-favorite pizza slices include pepperoni (44%), meat lovers (36%), classic cheese (34%) and chicken, bacon and ranch (18%).
Americans who prefer chicken, bacon and ranch, as well as roasted veggie (13%) are most likely to prefer rom-coms on their TV (both 33%), while classic cheese lovers opt for comedies (52%).
Pepperoni fans, on the other hand, are most likely to turn on an action or adventure flick (38%).
Two-thirds of all respondents are even likely to add additional cheese to their favorite slice of pizza. This goes double for bacon, chicken and ranch fans, as 81% are likely to layer on additional cheese.
But it’s more than just additional toppings Americans are interested in. For 45%, the cheese on their pizza needs to be plentiful and melty (33%).
What about cheese-less pizza? An astounding 91% of respondents say a pizza needs some kind of cheese to be classified as a pizza.
“We agree with the 91% of Americans that say a pizza isn’t a pizza without cheese,” said Kelly. “We’re obsessed with cheese, and we have melty, delicious dairy-free options for everyone to enjoy, so that no pizza has to go without.”
Survey methodology:
This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 general population Americans was commissioned by Daiya between Jan. 23 and Jan. 26, 2024. It was conducted by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).