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The 'Not Mr. Darcy but' trend has people sharing the everyday romantic things their partners do

Take that, Jane Austen!

Fandom.com/ @char.takes.shots/TikTok

This is a trend we can all get behind.

As any Jane Austen fan will tell you, the dark, brooding, but also incredibly selfless Mr. Darcy is the epitome of smoldering romance. I mean, have you seen the literal swoons that erupt from that iconic hand flex from 2025’s Pride & Prejudice? Woof.

However, there are so many other equally romantic gestures offered in everyday life that deserve to be celebrated just as ardently. And that’s exactly what folks are doing with the oh-so wholesome “Not Mr. Darcy, but” trend going around on TikTok.

Pride And Predjudice Hand GIFfrom Pride And Predjudice GIFs

The concept is pretty simple. People share videos of their partners practicing caring, selfless, but altogether mundane acts…all set to a musical bit from the movie soundtrack.

Here’s one example below, where a woman named Charlene (@char.takes.shots) records her husband walking over with a $1.50 Costco hotdog, complete with a side of chopped onions, just for her.

@char.takes.shots Fitzwilliam can keep his £10,000 a year 😍 #costco #mrdarcy #husbandandwife @Costco Wholesale ♬ original sound - Author Naomi Rawlings - Naomi Rawlings Books

As to be expected, real fans of the movie did not disappoint with their comments.

“You've bewitched him body and soul.”

Others simply gushed over how simple, yet how touching this act of love really was.

“May this type of love find us all.”

In another clip, below, another “Not Mr. Darcy" is seen walking up with takeout fried chicken.

@joannechun123 my personal uber eats #mrdarcy #prideandprejudice ♬ original sound - Author Naomi Rawlings - Naomi Rawlings Books

And they say the fastest way to man’s heart is the stomach. Women love food!

“What excellent fried chicken. Many years since I’ve had such exemplary poultry," wrote another well versed P&P fan.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Here’s another, non food-related one, where a “Not Mr. Darcy” scouring Barnes & Noble looking for the very last copy of a book his girlfriend wanted.

“Somehow the escalator not working and him running up them made it more Mr Darcy lol,” one person quipped.

@gabbyschiesser romance !!!! @Barnes & Noble #booktok #mrdarcy #prideandprejudice ♬ original sound - Author Naomi Rawlings - Naomi Rawlings Books

Pretty soon, the concept expanded to people romanticizing all kinds of everyday aspects from their lives. Like this one, where a woman films her sweet corgi eating raspberries. The zoom in on that fluffy butt is soooo satisfying, not gonna lie.

@maile_moe12 We grow the raspberries just for him 😆 #corgi #summer #corgisoftiktok ♬ original sound - Author Naomi Rawlings - Naomi Rawlings Books

You don’t have to be a P&P aficionado to appreciate this as a brilliant example of "romanticizing your life.” It might feel overly whimsical to some of us more practically leaning folks at first, or we might convince ourselves that there’s simply no time in indulge in such extravagances. But doing so can be so pivotal for cultivating a gratitude practice, boosting self esteem, engaging our creativity, and generally just feeling…better about our lives. That’s something we could all use a little more of right now.

Again, you don’t have to go all in on this trend, per se, but you could create your own “movie moment" using a film score that whisks you away to magical places, all while filming yourself going about your day. Or, simply drink your coffee while basking in morning sunshine, sans the camera. Whatever helps you see the beauty and the good in what you already have.

As for me, I’ll be playing Pride & Prejudice on repeat for the rest of the day.

From Your Site Articles

Walking Alongside Martu: A journey with one of the world’s oldest living cultures

Pura’s inaugural impact collection honors both sacred traditions and sustainable futures.

James Roh

True

In a world driven by speed, efficiency, and immediate results, it’s easy to forget that lasting change is built on trust. Real impact doesn’t come from rushing toward an end goal or measuring success through lofty metrics. It comes from falling in love with the problem, building a community around it, and sharing a vision for lasting transformation.

Pura, the smart home fragrance company that marries premium fragrance with innovative technology, recently launched its inaugural impact collection with K Farmer Dutjahn Foundation (KFDF) and Dutjahn Sandalwood Oils (DSO). The Pura x Dutjahn partnership began with a clear purpose: to source a sacred ingredient directly from its origin while honoring the land and the people who’ve cared for it. Our goal wasn’t simply to find sandalwood — it was to find a community and an ingredient that embody exceptional land stewardship, ethical harvesting, and transformative, community-led impact. After careful research and over three years of development, we saw an opportunity to secure a premium, luxurious ingredient while supporting a regenerative supply chain that invests in Indigenous-led education, economic opportunity, and land stewardship.

James Roh

Over the past several years, we’ve walked alongside Martu, an Indigenous tribe from the vast Western Australian desert. Martu are one of the oldest living cultures in the world, with a history spanning 60,000 years. As nomadic hunter-gatherers, they have unparalleled ecological knowledge, passed down through generations, making them the traditional custodians of the land. Their approach to sandalwood harvesting isn’t driven by market demand but by a deep respect for seasonal rhythms, land health, and cultural law. Their work adapts to the environment—whether it’s “sorry time,” when mourning pauses activities, or the harsh desert conditions that make travel and communication difficult. Martu operate on Martu time, a deliberate rhythm shaped by millennia of experience, far removed from the rapid-swipe, hyper-productive pace of Western systems.

Martu’s ecological knowledge isn’t documented in baseline reports. It’s lived, carried in stories, and practiced with rigor and respect for the changing needs of the ecosystems. True partnership means unlearning the typical approach. It means standing beside—not in front—and recognizing that the wisdom and leadership we need already exist within these communities. Our role isn’t to define the work, but to support it, protect it, and learn from it.

James Roh

Tonight, as I spoke with Chairman Clinton Farmer and the KFDF team about our focus for this piece, I learned that Clinton’s truck had broken down (again), leaving him to “limp” back to town from the desert at low speeds for hours and hours. He had been awake since 3:00 a.m. This is a common and costly setback, one that disrupts the harvest, demands days of driving, and brings real financial and emotional strain. These barriers are relentless and persistent, part of the harsh reality Clinton and his community face daily. It's easy for outsiders, detached from the reality on the ground, to impose rules, regulations, and demands from afar. Rather than continuing to impose, we need to truly partner with communities — equipping them with the resources to operate sustainably, avoid burnout, and protect the very land they love and care for. All while they endeavor to share these incredible, sacred ingredients with the world and build an economic engine for their people.

There is much to learn, but we are here to listen, adapt, and stay the course. The future we need will not be built in quarterly cycles. It will be built in trust, over time, together.

To learn more about the partnership and fragrances, visit Pura x Dutjahn.

'Tough love': Woman shares why husbands promise to be equal partners, but never change

"It doesn’t benefit him to change."

via Timur Weber/Pexels

A couple arguing on the couch.

Research shows that couples are becoming more egalitarian as it pertains to income. But when it comes to the division of domestic labor and taking care of families, there is still a considerable gap between the work done by men and women in heterosexual marriages.

Consider this: the average woman dedicates 4.6 hours per week to housework, while men contribute only 1.9 hours. Furthermore, women spend nearly 2 more hours on caregiving, including child-rearing than men.

Men and women are still having a hard time creating equal partnerships, and, more often than not, it means that women are the default parents of their children. They are also in charge of domestic duties and often have to make lists for their husbands and nag them to do their part.

Abby Eckel, a popular social media wife and mother, thinks this needs to end and uses her considerable platform to push to equalize domestic labor. In a video with over 900,000 views, she explains the harsh truth of why some men take advantage of their wives and refuse to change.

This is a harsh truth. But it needs to be said. He simply doesn't care.

@itsme_abbye
This is a harsh truth. But it needs to be said. He simply doesn't care. It should not take conversation after conversation after conversation for your husband/boyfriend/partner to list, learn, and change. It's because he doesn't care. It doesn't benefit him to change. Approaching your husband AGAIN to discuss household inequity is likely to fall on deaf ears because he has been EXPLOITING your time, energy and labor. And if he didn't care when he started doing it, he sure as shit isn't going to care now. And he likely knows there will be no consequence when he doesn't. Because again, this probably isn't the first time this conversation has been had. And nothing happened the last time you had, so why would it happen no? This is the very reason I tell women who are early in relationships, and those that are single - start out as you mean to go on. This requires setting boundaries for yourself and the person you're in a relationship with. Be clear and upfront on what you expect out of it, what you will and won't do. Because the second you start cleaning up his place, or your shared space, doing his laundry, looking after and caring for pets without setting firm expectations, you'll soon find yourself being the sole owner and doer of those tasks. And trying to set boundaries after the fact - AFTER a man has benefited from you doing it, isn't likely to happen. #marriage #datingadvice #relationshiptips #marriedlife

“This is going to sound harsh, but I think a lot of people actually just really need to hear the truth, and it’s because he doesn’t care. It doesn’t benefit him to change,” she says in the viral video.

“Approaching your husband again to discuss an issue, whether it’s household inequity, you not feeling considered, or you not feeling like he’s putting any time and effort into it, is likely going to fall on deaf ears because he’s been exploiting your time, your labor, your energy and if he didn’t care when he started doing it, he’s not going to care now,” Eckel continues.

Unfortunately, according to Eckel, if there are no consequences for refusing to be an equal partner, he won’t change. She equates it to parents who make threats to child children but don't follow through.

“Eventually, things are going to go back to how they were. You’re going to stop nagging him and he’s going to be fine with it. Until you bring it up again. And then again, nothing happens because there’s no consequences. So why would he want to change?” she says.

Eckel believes the key to avoiding this trap is to set firm boundaries at the beginning of the relationship.

“Be clear and upfront on what you expect out of it, what you will and won’t do,” she continues. “Because the second you start cleaning up his place, or your shared space, doing his laundry, looking after and caring for pets without setting firm expectations, you’ll soon find yourself being the sole owner and doer of those tasks, and trying to set boundaries after the fact — after a man has benefited from you doing it, isn’t likely to happen.”

Obviously, not all men have problems doing their fair share of domestic labor in a family. Eckel made another video in which she shares the positive qualities that an equal partner brings to the table.

See on Instagram

"I don't have to make him a list."

"I don't have to ask him to help with things around the house."

"He knows how to shop at the grocery store without pictures."

"He doesn't expect me to handle everything alone."

"He plans date nights without me having to beg for it."

"He does his own laundry."

"He makes his own appointments."

"My stocking has never been empty."

"He makes his kids' lunches in the morning."

"He makes his son's therapy appointments and takes his son to them."

"He doesn't believe that just because he goes to work, he shouldn't have to do anything when he gets home."

"He takes a genuine interest in me and my interests."

"He knows how to fold towels."

"He takes our kids to bed and knows our teachers' names."

"He doesn't make me feel bad if I'm not in the mood."

"He acknowledges and appreciates what I do and tells me often."

"He does basic adult tasks without being asked."

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The 'Not Mr. Darcy but' trend has people sharing the everyday romantic things their partners do

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"It doesn’t benefit him to change."

This is a harsh truth. But it needs to be said. He simply doesn't care.

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