When it comes to straight romantic relationships in the thriller subgenre, there are several tried and true narratives to explore. One of the most prevalent is ‘the threatening ex’: the reappearance of one partner’s paramour threatens an otherwise happy and healthy couple, chipping away at the new romance through paranoia, jealousy, and – more often than not – a few nefarious acts.

All of this plays out rather expectedly in writer Briana Cole’s new Tubi film Ex Door Neighbor. The film opens with newly engaged couple Imani (Chantal Riley), a pastry chef, and Deon (Kwaku Adu-Poku), a criminal defense attorney, on the hunt for a new condo. Like any thriller worth its salt, the cracks in their perfect façade are laid out in the first few scenes: Deon is a workaholic who can’t go for more than a few minutes without taking a call, a trait that clearly...