The Best Man Holiday Information

The Best Man Holiday is a 2013 American Christmas comedy-drama film directed and written by Malcolm D. Lee, a sequel to the 1999 film, The Best Man. The film, released on November 15, 2013 by Universal Pictures, African-American stars Taye Diggs, Terrence Howard, Harold Perrineau, Morris Chestnut, Sanaa Lathan, Nia Long, and Regina Hall, reprising their roles from the 1999 film along with the supporting cast.

Cast

• Taye Diggs as Harper Stewart, the protagonist of the original film
• Sanaa Lathan as Robin Stewart, Harper's wife
• Nia Long as Jordan Armstrong, Harper's close friend from college and former love interest
• Morris Chestnut as Lance Sullivan, Harper's estranged best friend who is a retiring football player
• Monica Calhoun as Mia Morgan Sullivan, Lance's wife
• Harold Perrineau as Julian Murch, Harper's intelligent, mild-mannered good friend
• Regina Hall as Candace "Candy" Sparks, Julian's wife who was once an exotic dancer
• Terrence Howard as Quentin Spivey, Harper's sly, foul-mouthed good friend
• Melissa De Sousa as Shelby Taylor, Julian's snobbish ex-girlfriend.
• Eddie Cibrian as Brian McDonald

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, Terrence Howard who plays Quentin Spivey in the film 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?[Director and screenwriter] Malcolm Lee showed us what intelligent young black people were capable of in the 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 and production began in April 2013.

Reception

The film has received mixed to positive reviews from critics, as it currently holds a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 65 reviews. The Washington Post's Ann Hornaday gave it 2.5 stars, saying "sequel 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 (natch) to Melissa Harris-Perry, Olivia Pope and Robin Thicke".

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. It then went on to be the number two film of the weekend, taking in close to $30.6 million.

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack includes songs by R. Kelly, Jordin Sparks, Mary J. Blige, Monica, Ne-Yo, Marsha Ambrosius, John Legend, Emeli Sandé, and more.