‘Mother of the Bride,’ from ‘Mean Girls’ director Mark Waters, also stars Miranda Cosgrove, Sean Teale, Chad Michael Murray and Rachael Harris
Brooke Shields and Benjamin Bratt have some catching up to do in Mother of the Bride.
The two play former college sweethearts, Lana and Will, who unexpectedly reunite in Thailand at the destination wedding of their respective children: Lana’s daughter Emma (Miranda Cosgrove) and Will’s son RJ (Sean Teale).
Netflix‘s newly released 2-minute trailer gives a brief snapshot of their awkward encounters as they try to make the trip and wedding day special for their kids, all while navigating their own baggage — and potential remaining romantic feelings.
“It’s time to take care of me a bit less and take care of yourself a little bit more,” Emma tells Lana near the end of the trailer. “I just want you to be happy.”
Directed by Mark Waters (Mean Girls), the upcoming rom-com also stars Chad Michael Murray, Rachael Harris, Wilson Cruz, Michael McDonald, Tasneem Roc and Dalip Sondhi.
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Sasidis Sasisakulporn/Netflix
Brooke Shields and Benjamin Bratt in Mother of the Bride (2024)
Related: Stars Who Were Parents of the Bride or Groom
In an interview surrounding an exclusive first look at Mother of the Bride last month, Waters, 59, told PEOPLE that part of the reason Bratt fit the role of leading man Will is his wide appeal.
“I find that romantic comedies, they often go for men who aren’t liked by other men in the male leads,” he said. “And since I am a man, I [want] somebody who is not only going to be beloved with women, but also men are going to see the movie and see, ‘Oh, I also like that guy. And that’s a guy that I could see being friends with.’ “
Shields, who is also a producer on the film, told PEOPLE that Bratt is “pretty easy to be a love interest” — and that she was also thrilled that his wife of over 20 years, Talisa Soto, came to Thailand for part of the shoot.
“She’s such a refined, beautiful woman,” said the actress, 58. “She epitomizes that, and I was so happy she wanted to come and spend the first portion of [filming] with us.”
Sasidis Sasisakulporn/Netflix
Sean Teale and Miranda Cosgrove in Mother of the Bride (2024)
Cosgrove, 30, told PEOPLE that the cast got to “spend pretty much every day together for the six weeks we were in Thailand” filming. “And one of the special things about making the movie was — since we were so far away from home, all of us, and in a new place — I really feel like we all got to know each other pretty fast,” she added.
For Shields, filming with her castmates “felt like theater … because we were all thrown together in such a foreign environment,” she recalled. “We were together all the time.”
“We just all stayed together, which was really nice. And we all lived right near each other [on location],” Shields explained.
Sasidis Sasisakulporn/Netflix
Miranda Cosgrove and Brooke Shields in Mother of the Bride (2024)
Waters said that while “there’s obviously a lot of comedic tension between Benjamin and Brooke’s characters” and romantic storylines to follow, “the real emotional heart of the movie is between the mother and the daughter.”
“Frankly, the scene where Emma goes to visit Lana in her bedroom the night before the wedding is the most emotional scene in the movie for me,” he said.
Cosgrove said her “strong relationship” with her own mom “definitely played into” how she approached her character Emma’s dynamic with Shields’ Lana, as she “had a lot to work with.”
“But also Brooke’s just really warm and loving, and she’s kind of the type of person that, even if you’ve only talked to her for an hour, you feel like you’ve known her a long time,” the iCarly actress added. “She’s just really warm.”
Mother of the Bride is streaming May 9 on Netflix.
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