The Best Man movies are part of the rare franchise club that gets better with each additional movie or TV show. The Best Man Holiday, in my opinion, was a sequel that was better than the original. It kept its dark comedy tone, stayed true to the characters of the original, and made choices that made me excited to watch The Best Man: The Final Chapters.
This series has the potential to join the best Peacock TV series club. We won’t know if The Best Man: The Final Chapters lives up to the glory of the films until it streams on December 22.
To prepare for the new show, I rewatched all of The Best Man movies. You should definitely rewatch them to get ready for the new show, but if you’re a little or a lot busy, here is a rundown of the important things to remember before the new Peacock series.
Warning: Spoilers for The Best Man movies are ahead. Proceed with caution.
The Best Man Characters Have A Complicated Relationship History
The Best Man movies have introduced quite a complicated relationship of exes, hookups, and current partners. It’s a dynamic that often creates tension amongst the group. Here are the basic need-to-know details on all the past romantic entanglements.
Harper (Taye Diggs) once hooked up with Lance’s (Morris Chestnut) college girlfriend turned wife, Mia (Monica Calhoun). It’s a secret he kept for a while until it came out in The Best Man. Harper also had a long-standing crush on Jordan (Nia Long) but they missed their chance to hook up or rekindle any old feelings.
Robyn (Sanaa Lathan) is Harper’s girlfriend (who didn't go to college with any of them) in The Best Man. The film concludes with him proposing to her. They are married and expecting a baby in The Best Man Holiday.
Julian (Harold Perrineau), sometimes called Murch (his last name), has an equally complicated love life. He was in a long-term relationship with Shelby (Melissa De Sousa) until he finally stood up for himself and broke up with her. He then ends up with Candace (Regina Hall). They are married. Shelby has a hatemance with Quentin (Terrence Howard), but they seem to hook up around the time of weddings and funerals.
However, neither take each other seriously as potential mates.
Harper Wrote A Fictionalized Version Of His Life In College
Much of the plot of the first movie involves each one of Harper’s friends reading his book, Unfinished Business. Harper does a terrible job of hiding identities so each friend recognizes themselves in his characters. This leads to a lot of conflicts, including Lance discovering that Harper and Mia once had sex.
The book is a hit, but Harper hasn’t had a best seller since.
All Of The Friends Have Had Some Level Of Success
Lance is the most successful with his professional football career, but all of his friends have achieved a lot by the time The Best Man Holiday came around. Even Quentin, who was a little bit of a drifter in the first film, has become really successful in his career. The film even shows a full circle moment when he can now help his friends out financially like they used to help him.
Harper is the only one struggling in his career in the second film. This is why he wants to write Lance’s biography. He knows that many celebrities write biographies and they sell well.
This book could not only help Harper gain financial independence again, but it could get him out of a writing slump. It could also start the process of repairing his relationship with Lance, who still hasn’t quite forgiven him completely for sleeping with Mia in college.
At the end of The Best Man Holiday, Harper’s biography on Lance has just been released, and Harper and Lance seem back to being best friends again.
Shelby has found major success as a Real Housewives franchise star. This will likely come into play in the new series, especially because they can probably get real cast members to make cameos. The show could find plenty of ways to include some shady moments like only a Real Housewife can deliver.
Mia Dies In The Best Man Holiday
One of the most tragic elements of The Best Man Holiday is the reveal that Mia has cancer. She dies only a day after Christmas. This gives the movie a somber tone, but it sets up a new chapter for Lance in The Best Man: The Final Chapters. We may watch him find love again or see him just learning how to cope with losing his wife and raising their many kids.
The Best Man Holiday Ends With Quentin About To Get Married
One of the best twists of the holiday-set sequel is that it ends with a question mark. Basically, this let us know that another Best Man cast reunion could come in the form of a future project. The question mark surrounded who Quentin would marry and if he would actually go through with it.
Quentin Likes To Stir The Pot
There are a couple of major traits about Quentin that have been consistent over the Best Man movies. He loves to stir the pot and he’s very promiscuous. Quentin also has a pretty low opinion of women, so it comes as a bit of a shock that he now plans to settle down. I expect more Quentin shenanigans in The Best Man: The Final Chapters. He’s definitely going to expose more secrets and try to create tension.
I think that Shelby and Quentin should not become part of the world of enemies-to-lovers pairings, but the Peacock series definitely has to address their hatred for each other and how it sometimes leads to sex. Quentin also bonded with Shelby’s daughter in The Best Man Holiday, so I wouldn’t be shocked if he ends up leaving his fiancé for Shelby (I would be surprised if his fiancé is Shelby). However, I think it would be more interesting if the show just lets both find mates that are not within their group.
Jordan Is Dating Brian In The Best Man Sequel
Jordan ends The Best Man Holiday with her boyfriend Brian (Eddie Cibrian). She plans to really give their romance a chance. However, one of the things we know about The Best Man: The Final Chapters is that Brandon Victor Dixon plays someone from Jordan’s past, and likely her new love interest in this movie. Therefore, it may be safe to assume that Brian and Jordan have broken up.
I am excited to see how the show wraps up everyone’s story, and if it’s as good as The Best Man movies. The Best Man: The Final Chapters premieres on Peacock on December 22.
