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“Spa Weekend” Film Details
- Director(s): Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
- Writer(s): Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
- Runtime: 1 Hour(s) and 37 Minutes
- Public Release Date (In Theaters): August 21, 2026
- Genre(s): Comedy
- Content Rating: Rated R
- Primary Language: English
- Images © of / Courtesy Of Black Bear Pictures
Movie Summary
Since middle school, Sophie, Coco, Mel, and Jane have been friends. Sophie is the quiet and nice one, Mel the wild child, and Coco and Jane exist in the middle. In Spa Weekend, Jane is the lead, and after decades of friendship, the first reunion in a long time happens during Jane’s birthday weekend. It was hard to schedule, since friendship becomes secondary to kids, husbands, and work, but Coco forced everyone’s hand.
But while planning everything out, she had one request: No Mel. For while everyone else matured and got their lives together, even if they are now divorced or hate their job, Mel is still unstable in more ways than one. However, Sophie being who she is, she invites Mel last minute, and we come to understand why Coco didn’t want Mel to come and also why the friend group still claims Mel, even if she often is a lot.
Cast and Characters
Coco (Michelle Buteau)
- Character Summary: Coco is recently divorced and still recovering from that, has two children, and is the reason the spa weekend even happened – because she got a major discount through her job.
Sophie (Anna Faris)
- Character Summary: Sophie is an assistant to a man-baby with an off-camera family we never see. She is touted as the nice one in the group, to the point that her kindness causes issues for the others.
Jane (Leslie Mann)
- Character Summary: Jane is a lawyer, passing the bar in California, who has kids, a sick father, a brother who is a bit immature, and an ex nowhere to be seen. She doesn’t really make time for herself, especially to date.
Mel (Isla Fisher)
- Character Summary: Mel has always been a wild child. From stealing cars when they were teens to living life with almost reckless abandon, Mel has long been the person of the friend group talked about more than talked with. Leaving her to not be there for most of the casual hangouts.
Review and Commentary
Highlight(s)
Coco’s Storyline [85/100]
I feel like, of the four women, Coco was allowed the most complexity. She did not shy away from being a Black woman, the complicated relationship she had with her ex-husband, her struggles, or how she felt about Mel. I’d even say this was a nice extension of what we’ve seen from Michelle Buteau in Survival of the Thickest.
How? Because Buteau continued to showcase that all too familiar funny Black best friend character who is always supportive and ready with a quip, but through her performance and the writing, that character was given life. From what it seems, Coco didn’t want a divorce; her anger probably dates back to her childhood, and she is struggling with the fact that she still has feelings for her ex and hasn’t moved on yet.
This makes a layered character who, yes, we don’t know what she does for a living, but it seems like she is far more than a token in the group, or a grown-up version of a sitcom stereotype. If anything, she is a reminder that people like Coco exist, and it gives a fleshed-out version of the classic character who rarely got their story told.
Understanding Why Mel Is Part Of The Friend Group [82/100]
At first, Mel is the worst part of Spa Weekend. Everyone has grounded and relatable issues, and then Mel comes in like a comic relief who is uninhibited, loud, annoying, and by no means funny enough to compensate for any misgivings you could have. But, in time, there is a push for you to understand why Coco, Sophie, and Jane not only keep Mel around but perhaps need her.
For one, she disrupts their routine. Yes, often through chaos, but also in the form of getting them to push past all that holds them back from pursuing happiness, or at least less stress. Secondly, she is raw and understands her friends well enough to know what they may want and need. Now, again, does her pursuit in helping them lead to turmoil? Yes. But it’s clear no one else is going to make a move.
They know Coco misses her husband, but they aren’t going to get involved. Jane needs some spontaneity in her life, but their means of respect becomes enabling Jane to maintain her tight grip on life to the point it’s dying. Then with Sophie, she is so nice that she doesn’t have boundaries or even the ability to push back in a meaningful way.
So Mel doing something, saying something, may never be the perfect way, but it is better than what everyone has been doing, which is ignoring their misery or doing their best to quietly suffer.
If You Love Anyone’s Shtick, You’ll Get What You Expect And Sometimes More [83/100]
I would say, unlike The Wrong Girls, Spa Weekend not only knows what each lead actress is known for, but also chooses to push them a bit. Buteau is the bubbly best friend at times, but she is also allowed to be angry, upset at how life is going, and not be likable at times. Sophie is very much in Anna Faris’ wheelhouse, but it taps a bit more into that archetype of someone who is just trying to keep up and is a bit exasperated because of what life has thrown at them.
The same goes for Jane, though maybe not so much Mel. However, you’ll certainly get far more than what the peers of Spa Weekend give you.
On The Fence
Feeling Like We’re Missing Details [77/100]
When it comes to Spa Weekend, all characters aren’t fleshed out the same way. For example, we don’t learn what Coco does for a living, but we also don’t meet Sophie’s kids or husband. We see Jane’s work life and kids, but as for who her ex-husband is? We assume he just abandoned the family.
These missing details may not be a big issue for most. However, because of how Coco’s ex is written, and through that relationship you are given the sense she is imperfect, hence the divorce, it leaves you to wonder if the key to seeing a fully fleshed out Jane and Sophie is in those missing details. For without that, Sophie and Jane feel so ideal and likable that they are bland.
Which, I get, the movie outright pushes how these women are supposed to be relatable, for they put everyone before themselves and need to advocate for themselves more. But I think in the effort to make them everywoman, they don’t get to be individuals.
Overall
Our Rating (81/100): Positive (Worth Seeing)
Spa Weekend is comical, relatable, has characters you can latch onto, and while it may not flesh each one out as it should, it is overall a good time.
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