Kiana Madeira, Ross Butler, Matthew Noszka Perfect Addiction

In the streaming era, there’s no shortage of steamy, new-adult romance dramas to choose between — think: the “After” series, “Euphoria,” and “Bridgerton” — so any new project entering into the genre’s landscape has to set itself apart. Thankfully, Kiana Madeira, Ross Butler, and Matthew Noszka’s new movie “Perfect Addiction,” which hit Amazon Prime Video on April 14, succeeds at that with flying colors.

The movie follows a mixed martial arts trainer named Sienna (Madeira) who — after devoting much of her life to training and taking care of her reigning champion fighter boyfriend, Jax (Noszka) — finds out he’s been cheating on her with her sister. Set on getting revenge, Sienna begins training Jax’s nemesis Kayden (Butler) to beat him in the ring. But when their training sessions spark real feelings, Sienna has to figure out what’s more important: her newfound feelings for Kayden or her obsession with getting back at her ex.

Not only was Butler thrilled to step into the broody role of Kayden, but the star, who you might recognize from “To All the Boys,” “13 Reasons Why” and “Shazam!,” was even more excited to be starring in a movie that centers women in every respect. Not only does the film have a woman director (“After” franchise director Castille Landon), screenwriter (Stephanie Sanditz), and creator (Claudia Tan wrote the original novel the movie is based on), but the movie itself sees Sienna dominate over the men in her life both in the ring and in the bedroom.

“Usually, especially when you have these male physical action parts, the tendency is like these guys are the ones that take the reins. But we really wanted to show how a female can take the power, and also in a healthier relationship,” Butler tells POPSUGAR. What’s more, he says, the movie shows a woman “breaking into a male-dominated space . . . [and] things do need to be more balanced, and we need to show that.”

Madeira, the movie’s leading lady, feels the same way and appreciates that “Perfect Addiction” allows Sienna to be a layered, complicated character who prioritizes herself. “This is a young woman who’s gone through a lot,” Madeira says. “She’s loved really hard. She’s had her heart broken. She then turns to this desperate need for revenge, only to come full circle to forgiveness and deciding to put herself first . . . [She’s] extremely strong, very fiery, can be very tough, but at the same time, can be very soft, and very gentle and kind and loving.”

By far the most significant difference between “Perfect Addiction” and other sexy romances on the market today is the backdrop of MMA fighting. Noszka, who went through a year of training to portray the champion MMA fighter Jax in his first-ever action role, promises that anyone looking for realistic, gritty MMA fights will be satisfied with the film, comparing its action sequences to movies like “Never Back Down,” Mark Wahlberg‘s “The Fighter,” and Channing Tatum‘s “Fighting.”

“[Those movies] had that animalistic nature of fighting, but also the love, and the drama, and the romance,” Noszka shares. “So I think for us, it’s not your typical love story . . . we have the aspect of true MMA bouts, and it’s underground, so it’s gritty.” He also explains that the cast and crew shot in an abandoned vodka warehouse in Poland, where it was freezing cold, to capture the look and feel of the film. “We were in the thick of it and it was like dirt, and grimy, and dusty . . . It brought an authenticity to the film that not a lot of these other . . . [movies] bring,” he says.

Of course, the movie delivers steamy scenes despite the cold. Of filming the unexpected moment where Sienna and Kayden “cross that threshold” from will-they-won’t-they into oh-they’re-going-there romance, Butler says, “I love this particular setup, because . . . at the beginning, we are fighting, doing everything in our power not to get involved.” The pair realize the spark between them is undeniable while doing some home improvement painting. “I’m not gonna lie, like, when I paint her, it’s kinda hot,” he says with a laugh.

All these aspects of the film have paid off. On March 28, Butler posted an Instagram sharing that “Perfect Addiction” was already No. 1 on Amazon Prime Video globally, long before it even started streaming in the US. “This is just really rewarding,” Madeira says of the accomplishment. “Especially the comments I’ve been getting from young women who have said, ‘I feel so empowered when I watch this. I feel really seen.'”

“Perfect Addiction” is available to stream now on Amazon Prime Video.

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