The Best Man Holiday reunites the original cast, now aged between 40-50, from The Best Man film. Set years after its initial release, it follows Lance (Morris Chestnut) and Mia Sullivan (Monica Calhoun), hosting friends for an enjoyable Christmas weekend celebration.
This film entertains with laughter, both witty and dirty, some tears, and heart-to-hearts. But at times, it veers towards saccharine or sentimentality.
Contents
show
Taye Diggs
Morris Chestnut, Taye Diggs, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan Nia Long, and Harold Perrineau came together in 1999 in The Best Man and quickly became critically and commercially successful. Additionally, its sequel in 2013, titled The Best Man Holiday, was met with equal acclaim by audiences. Now, more than 15 years later, the college friends are coming back together again on Peacock for an eight-part series that premieres this November.
The new series picks up where the last film left off. Harper, an up-and-coming Chicago author whose debut novel is soon to be published, travels to New York City for an old friend’s wedding and finds himself embroiled in a web of love, career, and friendships that has him trapped for much of his stay there.
Melissa De Sousa reprises her role of Shelby as a strong-willed individual who pursues what they want personally and professionally. Shelby remains bold and forceful as ever, but her demeanor has softened somewhat since becoming MSNBC’s Executive Producer.
Morris Chestnut
The Best Man franchise will return to television screens for the first time since 2013’s follow-up film, The Best Man Holiday. The Peacock miniseries picks up 14 years after Mia Sullivan, wife of original movie star Lance Sullivan (Morris Chestnut), invited the entire crew over for Christmas at her home as a means of healing old wounds and finding peace between themselves and Mia (portrayed by Olivia Wilde).
Malcolm D. Lee brings back many members of the original 1999 cast for this sequel directed by them, including Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Sanaa Lathan, Terrence Howard, Harold Perrineau, and Regina Hall, along with Melissa De Sousa and Alicia Keys, who will also return.
The Best Man Holiday received mixed reviews, yet it managed to elicit honest laughs from its broad comedy while offering captivating drama from a conventional plot. Its cast and director earned multiple accolades and nominations (four NAACP Image Awards nods); commercially speaking, it grossed $72.8 million worldwide and featured Chestnut as an active advocate for various charities, including the American Cancer Society, Autism Speaks and I Have a Dream.
Nia Long
The Best Man Holiday follows Harper, Jordan, Lance, Robyn, and Shelby years after the events in the original film have occurred and finds them grappling with new challenges together. Though reunions may present obstacles, they unite again and learn to cherish each other more deeply while taking nothing for granted.
Long is best known for her roles on TV shows such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Third Watch and films such as Soul Food, Love Jones, Boiler Room Big Momma’s House, and Are We There Yet? Additionally, Long directed the music video for Kanye West’s hit single “Touch the Sky.”
Nitara Carlynn Long, of Trinidadian heritage, was born and raised in California before graduating from Westchester High School with honors in 2001. As an actor and producer, she appears regularly on Fox’s Empire and CBS’s NCIS: Los Angeles drama series. Long is her parents, Talita Gillman and Doughtry Long’s daughter; she attended St Mary’s Academy Roman Catholic school before graduating from Westchester High School with honors. Massai Zhivago Dorsey II is her son, while former actor Michael Beach had once proposed.
Sanaa Lathan
Sanaa Lathan is an American actress known for appearing in various popular television shows and movies. Born to director/producer Stan Lathan and Broadway actress Eleanor McCoy (with four siblings), Lathan began acting professionally in the 1990s; since then, she has appeared on hit shows like In the House, Family Matters, NYPD Blue, and Moesha.
She has appeared in film, television, and theater productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and has been nominated for several awards due to her work. She has received many praiseworthy praises.
The Best Man Holiday is the sequel to Malcolm D. Lee’s 1999 film of the same name. It features Nia Long as Jordan, Regina Hall as Candy, Morris Chestnut as Lance, Harold Perrineau as Julian, and Sanaa Lathan as Robyn Stewart in its cast. The original was an enormous success and gave rise to two sequels.
Terrence Howard
The Best Man Holiday is the follow-up to 1999’s The Best Man and brings together its ensemble cast from college days. Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Morris Chestnut, Sanaa Lathan, Harold Perrineau, and Terrence Howard all reprise their roles and meet for Christmas at Lance’s house to mend old feuds or try and make amends with each other.
This romantic comedy may be filled with cliches, but it remains enjoyable. The cast members have great chemistry, and its story is upbeat; it makes an excellent holiday movie choice! However, given the film started as a racy adult reunion flick, its religious overtones and evangelical Christian message may feel out of place. Even so, The Best Man Holiday should still be watched by fans of its original version as it offers an unexpected respite from all the usual festive movies on big screens today.
Harold Perrineau
Harold Perrineau is an actor best known for his roles as Michael Dawson on Lost, Link in The Matrix movies and games, Augustus Hill on Oz TV show, and Mercutio in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet. Additionally, he co-starred in the ABC drama The Unusuals as NYPD detective Leo Banks.
The Best Man Holiday is the sequel to a 1999 film about five friends who reunite after fifteen years, featuring Taye Diggs, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Melissa De Sousa, Sanaa Lathan Terrence Howard, and Regina Hall as actors and directed by Malcolm D. Lee.
At Universal Pictures, Lee has produced and written several successful feature comedies like The Best Man Holiday as well as signed a first-look deal to expand his work into television; saving by the Bell reboots are currently underway, and Punky Brewster reboots are coming up, as well as co-produced projects between Lee’s Blackmailed Productions and Dayna Lynne North’s Loud Sis Productions.
Regina Hall
Morris Chestnut, Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Harold Perrineau, Melissa De Sousa, and Regina Hall return for The Best Man Holiday, an upcoming limited series from writer/director Malcolm Lee set during the holidays.
The movie was an instantaneous hit among audiences and critics who loved the chemistry between its cast. Since its release, many of those actors have gone on to star in other movies and TV shows – Regina Hall, in particular, has become an instantaneous household name by playing Robin in this new series.
Viewers will catch up with Harper, Robyn, Jordan, Lance, Quentin, Shelby, and Candace as their relationships evolve and past grievances surface again. Their reunion promises to be both entertaining and heartfelt! Regina Hall has been busy with Girl’s Trip and Scary Movie franchise, appearing regularly in The CW’s Black Lightning television show and hosting numerous events around the country.
Melissa De Sousa
Melissa De Sousa is an established actress who has appeared on several popular TV series such as Getting By, Living Single and Valley of the Dolls as a regular guest star. In The Best Man, she played Murch’s demanding girlfriend Shelby and appeared in movies such as Laurel Canyon and Miss Congeniality. Most recently, Melissa is starring as police chief Ana Lopez on the Peacock series The Final Chapters 2022 Peacock TV show.
The Best Man Holiday was released in November 2013 to positive reviews from critics. It was an enormous box office success, earning $72.8 million worldwide off its production budget of $17 million and becoming the third highest grossing film that weekend behind Thor: The Dark World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Taye Diggs, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Sanaa Lathan, Terrence Howard, and Harold Perrineau reprised their roles from the 1999 movie for this sequel directed by Malcolm D. Lee, who also wrote and directed it. It depicts old college friends reconnecting after many years apart but finding their friendship intact despite time passing them by.