''The Best Man Holiday'' is a 2013 American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film written, co-produced and directed by Malcolm D. Lee. A

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

to Lee's '' The Best Man'' (1999), it stars

Morris Chestnut Morris Lamont Chestnut (born January 1, 1969) is an American actor. He first came to prominence for his role as Ricky in the 1991 film ''Boyz n the Hood''. He has appeared in feature films and on television series, including the starring role of ...

Taye Diggs Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs (born January 2, 1971) is an American stage and film actor. He is known for his roles in the Broadway musicals ''Rent'' and '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', the TV series ''Private Practice'' (2007-2013), ''Murder in the ...

Regina Hall Regina Lee Hall (born December 12, 1970) is an American actress. She rose to prominence for her role as Brenda Meeks in the comedy horror ''Scary Movie'' film series (2000–2006). She has since appeared in the television series '' Ally McBeal ...

Terrence Howard Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films ''Dead Presidents'' and '' Mr. Holland's Opus'', Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema roles ...

Sanaa Lathan Sanaa McCoy Lathan (born September 19, 1971) is an American actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. Her career began after she appeared in the shows ''In the House'', '' Family Matters'', ''NYPD Blue ...

Nia Long Nia Talita Long (born October 30, 1970) is an American actress. Best known for her work in Black cinema, Long rose to prominence after starring in the film ''Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), and for her portrayal of Beullah "Lisa" Wilkes on the NBC sit ...

Harold Perrineau Harold Perrineau (born August 7, 1963) is an American actor best known for his roles as Michael Dawson in the ABC television series ''Lost'' (2004–2010), Augustus Hill in the HBO television series '' Oz'' (1997–2003), Sheriff Boyd Stevens ...

Monica Calhoun Monica Calhoun (born July 29, 1971) is an American film and television actress. Calhoun is best known for her roles in the films ''Bagdad Cafe'', ''The Players Club'', '' The Salon'', '' The Best Man'', and its sequel ''The Best Man Holiday''. Ca ...

and

Melissa De Sousa Melissa De Sousa is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Shelby in the 1999 romantic comedy-drama film '' The Best Man'', its 2013 sequel ''The Best Man Holiday'' and the 2022 Peacock series '' The Best Man: The Final Chapters ...

, all reprising their roles from the previous film. Along with Lee, the film was produced by

Sean Daniel Sean Peter Daniel (born August 15, 1951)
filmreference.com, January 21, 2014 is an American film producer and ...

. Highly anticipated, the project was announced in October 2011 and principal photography began in April 2013 in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. ''The Best Man Holiday'' was released on November 15, 2013 by

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

. It received positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances of the cast, Lee's direction and the dramatic elements, with some criticism aimed at the screenplay. It was a commercial success, grossing $71 million worldwide on a production budget of $17 million. The film received multiple accolades and nominations, including being nominated four times at the 45th NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Motion Picture, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture (Chestnut and Howard) and Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture (Lee).

Plot

Mia Sullivan, Lance's wife, has invited the old gang for Christmas: Harper Stewart and his pregnant wife Robyn, Julian "Murch" Murchison and wife Candace Sparks, her best friend Jordan Armstrong and boyfriend Brian McDonald, Quentin "Q" Spivey, and Shelby Taylor. Shelby is on the hit ''

The Real Housewives ''The Real Housewives'' is an international reality television media franchise, franchise that consists of 57 programs; 11 The Real Housewives#Installments originated in the United States, American installments, 20 The Real Housewives#Installments ...

'' TV show franchise, and now a prominent

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

star. Q is a successful

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

manager, heavily connected to prominent celebrities. Years after his debut novel, Harper has

writer's block Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Mike Rose found that this creative stall is not a result of commitment problems or th ...

and financial difficulties as he was let go from

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, as well as Robyn has difficulty in conceiving. His agent suggests he write a biography of his former best friend Lance, poised to retire from football. Though on speaking terms, Lance keeps him at a distance. Harper reluctantly agrees to do it, but in secret. The Murch family now includes two girls and Julian runs a renowned school with former stripper Candace as his head of admissions. His main donor abruptly pulls his funding from the school when he learns of Candace's past. Then Julian finds a

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

video of her stripping and accepting money for sex at a fraternity party, which he shows Q. All arrive, the first time together in 14 years. At dinnertime, as the friends catch up, old tensions resurface. As Brian leaves for his family's annual

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

gathering in

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, Jordan tells him that, while she loves him, she does not need him. He retorts that 'Everybody needs somebody'. One evening the gang has a good time, with the men dancing and lip-syncing to "

Can You Stand the Rain "Can You Stand the Rain" is a ballad by R&B/pop group New Edition. The song was released on December 13, 1988 by MCA Records as the third single from their fifth studio album, ''Heart Break''. Overview Written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry L ...

" which Mia sees has worked to patch up old wounds between Lance and Harper. Another night Harper finds Mia downstairs vomiting blood, so she admits her terminal cancer diagnosis and asks him to help Lance accept it. At breakfast the next morning, Q and Shelby accidentally switch phones and she finds Candace's video. She tries to coerce Julian into resuming their relationship but he refuses. Soon afterwards, Candace confronts Shelby, leading to a physical altercation after which Candace leaves with the kids. Later, she returns and reconciles with Julian. The ladies are preparing for a spa day when Mia collapses. This forces Harper to tell everyone about Mia's condition and everyone is supportive. While Harper is wrapping the children's Christmas gifts, Lance approaches him and they reminisce about their college days, seemingly reconciling. The next day, as the gang volunteers at a shelter, Lance finds Harper's iPad and journal in Mia's purse, and a mock book cover for his

unauthorized biography An unauthorized biography is a biography written without the subject's permission or input. The term is usually restricted to biographies written within the subject's lifetime or shortly after their death; as such, it is not applied to biographi ...

on the tablet. Lance angrily confronts Harper, telling him to stay away from him and his family, 'forever'. Mia unsuccessfully tries to calm him down. He takes her home, leaving Q and Harper behind where Harper finally breaks down and admits the truth of his financial situation. After giving humble words of comfort to Harper, Q vows to take care of his debts as a friendly favor. Lance is still heated over the biography when Mia challenges him to face reality. The longtime feud between the two men is due to a her fling with Harper (see The Best Man), which she knew would hurt Lance. Mia then takes off her wig, forcing him to also acknowledge the severity of her condition. Christmas Day is Lance's big game. Brian returns and apologizes to Jordan. After Lance's troublesome first half, Mia calls him. This inspires him to break the all-time rushing record. The men then hurry home to Mia who, shortly after, succumbs to the cancer. At the memorial service, Harper delivers a heartfelt eulogy. Lance later thanks his friend and in the conversation affirms, 'But God is always there when we need him.' Harper is encouraged: 'That is why you will always be the better man.' All reconcile and Q and Shelby face their incompatibility. She gives Julian $2 million to cover the lost funding with no strings attached. Later, Jordan's boyfriend Brian promises to help through his contacts. Robyn's water breaks so Lance, Harper, and Candace try to rush her to the hospital but get stuck in traffic; so Lance delivers Harper's baby in the backseat of the

SUV A sport utility vehicle (SUV) is a car classification that combines elements of road-going passenger cars with features from off-road vehicles, such as raised ground clearance and four-wheel drive. There is no commonly agreed-upon definiti ...

. The healthy baby girl is named Mia. Ten months later, Harper and Lance are closer than ever and Harper has written Lance's biography, ''God, Family and Football''. When Lance visits Harper and Robyn in

NYC New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Q calls to announce his anticipated marriage but jokes that Harper had better not have slept with his bride.

Cast

as Harper Stewart *

as Robyn Stewart *

as Jordan Armstrong *

as Lance Sullivan *

as Julian "Murch" Murchison *

as Quentin "Q" Spivey *

as Mia Sullivan *

as Shelby Taylor *

as Candace "Candy" Sparks *

Eddie Cibrian Edward Carl Cibrian ( ; born June 16, 1973) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Cole Deschanel on the television series '' Sunset Beach'' and Jimmy Doherty on ''Third Watch''. His other notable television roles include Mat ...

as Brian McDonald *

John Michael Higgins John Michael Higgins (born February 12, 1963) is an American actor and comedian whose film credits include Christopher Guest's mockumentaries, the role of David Letterman in HBO's '' The Late Shift'', and a starring role in the American vers ...

as Stan * Isis Moore as Kennedy *

Riele Downs Riele Downs (born July 8, 2001) is a Canadian actress. She began her career as a child actress, playing Faith in the 2013 film ''The Best Man Holiday''. She went on to co-star as Charlotte on the Nickelodeon television series '' Henry Danger'' f ...

as Faith Sullivan *

Millie Davis Millie Davis (born 6 December 2006) is a Canadian actress who plays Ms. O / Big O in the TVOKids/ PBS Kids series ''Odd Squad'', Riley in the television show ''Dino Dana'', Summer in ''Wonder'', and Gemma Hendrix in ''Orphan Black.'' She was nomi ...

as Hope * Catherine Bruhier as Dr. Perkins * Chris Williams as Dr. Nelson (voice) *

Shailyn Pierre-Dixon Shailyn Pierre-Dixon (born June 1, 2003) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as the young Aminata in the television miniseries '' The Book of Negroes'', for which she won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress in a ...

as Kelly *

Shailene Garnett Shailene Garnett is a Canadian actress and filmmaker. She is known for starring in a variety of television series, including the CBC Television series '' Diggstown'' (2019–2022) and ''Murdoch Mysteries'' (2018–present), the Freeform series ...

as Jordan's Assistant * Miles J Stroter as Lonnie

Production

In October 2011, it was announced that a sequel to the 1999 film ''The Best Man'' was in development. On February 22, 2013, it was announced that the film would be titled ''The Best Man Holiday''. In March 2013,

revealed details about the film, saying: "I think it's going to be amazing film and I get teary-eyed thinking about it because there's some tragedy in it. That's all I'll say... irector and screenwriterMalcolm Lee showed us what intelligent young black people were capable of in ''The Best Man I'', but ''The Best Man II'', it shows where people go, whether they're doing the right thing or the wrong thing, and how much we need each other within our community."

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

began in April 2013 in Toronto, Ontario.

Reception

Box office

''The Best Man Holiday'' debuted with a $10.7 million Friday total, notably beating '' Thor: The Dark World'' for the top box office spot of that day. ''The Best Man Holiday'' did even better the next day earning $12.4 million on Saturday. It then went on to be the number two film of the weekend, taking in close to $30.6 million.

Critical response

, the film holds approval rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, based on reviews with an average rating of . The site's critical consensus reads, "''The Best Man Holiday'' manages honest laughs out of broad humor, and affects convincing drama from a deeply conventional plot."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

gives the film a score of 59 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

reported that audiences gave the film a rare "A+" grade. ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''s Ann Hornaday gave it 2.5 stars, saying the " quel is both a romp and a tearjerker... Like a long-lost soap opera emerging from a Rip Van Winkle–length hiatus, 'The Best Man Holiday' has lost none of its often baggy, saggy melodrama; luckily, when things get too soppy, Howard can be depended on for crude one-liners that land with all the more finesse thanks to his smoky, slightly stoned delivery. ...And 'The Best Man Holiday' has clearly caught up with the times, with one plot point revolving around social media run amok, off-handedly invoking everyone from

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

(natch) to

Melissa Harris-Perry Melissa Victoria Harris-Perry (born October 2, 1973), formerly known as Melissa Victoria Harris-Lacewell, is an American writer, professor, television host, and political commentator with a focus on African-American politics. Harris-Perry hoste ...

Olivia Pope Olivia Carolyn Pope is a fictional character created by Shonda Rhimes for the political drama television series ''Scandal''. This character also played a small role in the series ''How to Get Away with Murder'' on its 4th season produced by Shon ...

and

Robin Thicke Robin Alan Thicke (born March 10, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his 2013 hit single " Blurred Lines", which is one of the best-selling singles of all time. At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, h ...

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack includes songs by

R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwi ...

Jordin Sparks Jordin Sparks-Thomas (born December 22, 1989) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame in 2007 after winning the sixth season of ''American Idol'' at age 17, becoming the youngest winner in the series' history. Her self-titled debu ...

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

, Monica,

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...

Marsha Ambrosius Marsha Ambrosius-Billups (born 8 August 1977) is an English singer and songwriter from Liverpool, England. She embarked on her musical career as a member of Floetry. Ambrosius released her debut solo album '' Late Nights & Early Mornings'' in M ...

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and record producer. He began his musical career by working behind the scenes, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Ever ...

Emeli Sandé Adele Emily Sandé, ( ; born 10 March 1987), known professionally as Emeli Sandé, is a Scottish singer and songwriter. Born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, and raised in Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, by an English mother and a Zambian fathe ...

, and more. ;Weekly charts ;Year-end charts

Awards and nominations

Acapulco Black Film Festival The American Black Film Festival (originally called the Acalpulco Black Film Festival) is an independent film festival that focuses primarily on black film—works by Black members of the film industry. It is held to recognize achievements of film ...

* Best Ensemble Cast (winner) * Best Actress—

(winner) * Best Supporting Actor—

(winner) * Best Actor—

(nominated) * Movie of the Year— Malcolm D. Lee and

Sean Daniel Sean Peter Daniel (born August 15, 1951)
filmreference.com, January 21, 2014 is an American film producer and ...

(nominated) * Best Screenplay—Malcolm D. Lee (nominated) * Best Supporting Actress—

(nominated) * Best Director—Malcolm D. Lee (nominated) 14th BET Awards * Best Movie (nominated) 2014 Black Reel Awards * Outstanding Actress, Motion Picture—Nia Long (nominated) * Outstanding Director, Motion Picture—Malcolm D. Lee (nominated) * Outstanding Screenplay (Adapted or Original), Motion Picture—Malcolm D. Lee (nominated) * Outstanding Ensemble—Julie Hutchinson (nominated) * Outstanding Score—

Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jaz ...

(nominated) 45th NAACP Image Awards * Outstanding Motion Picture (nominated) * Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture—Morris Chestnut (nominated) * Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture—Terrence Howard (nominated) * Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture—Malcolm D. Lee (nominated)

Sequel

In February 2021,

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...

gave a

limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...

order to a follow-up consisting of ten episodes. '' The Best Man: The Final Chapters'' is created by Lee and Dayna Lynne North, who also serve as executive producers. Chestnut, Diggs, Hall, Howard, Lathan, Long, Perrineau and De Sousa are set to reprise their roles. The 8-episode series premiered on December 22, 2022.

References

External links

* * *
''The Best Man Holiday''
at the

ComingSoon.net Mandatory (formerly CraveOnline Media) is a lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York City, Chicago and San Francisco. The site is owned by media company Evolve Media, LLC. Mandatory focuses its contents into the male- ...

* http://www.best-man.com/timeline/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Best Man Holiday, The 2013 films African-American films American Christmas comedy-drama films American sequel films Films scored by Stanley Clarke Films about cancer Films about death Films about writers Films directed by Malcolm D. Lee American pregnancy films Tragicomedy films Universal Pictures films 2010s pregnancy films 2010s Christmas comedy-drama films New York Giants Films set in New York (state) Films shot in New York (state) Films shot in Toronto 2010s English-language films 2010s American films