Sometimes, all you need is a weekend away from work, family responsibilities, relationship problems, and the endless stress of everyday life. You book a beautiful hotel, put on a comfortable robe, enjoy a massage, and promise yourself that you will not think about your problems for at least 48 hours.
Sounds perfect, right?
Well, the four women in Spa Weekend (2026) discover that even the most luxurious getaway can turn into a complete disaster when friendship, bad decisions, and one particularly chaotic friend enter the picture.
Directed by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, the comedy stars Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Anna Faris. The filmmakers are known for comedies such as The Hangover and Bad Moms, so the idea of putting a group of friends in a luxury resort and watching their plans fall apart sounds like a promising recipe for laughter.
But does Spa Weekend deliver the hilarious comedy its premise promises, or does it leave you wishing you had spent your evening watching something else?
Let’s talk about it.
What Is Spa Weekend About?
Spa Weekend follows three longtime friends, Jane, Coco, and Sophie, who have reached a point in their lives where their responsibilities seem to be taking over everything.
Between work, relationships, family obligations, and personal struggles, they barely have enough time to look after themselves, let alone maintain the friendships that once meant so much to them.
So, they decide to take a much-needed break at a luxury spa retreat in Palm Springs. The plan is simple: relax, enjoy the facilities, forget their problems for a while, and reconnect with one another.
For once, nobody needs to be the responsible one. Nobody needs to answer work emails or spend the entire day worrying about other people’s problems.
Unfortunately, their peaceful weekend takes a different direction when Mel, their unpredictable old friend, turns up.
Mel is not exactly the type of person you invite when your primary objective is peace and quiet. She brings an entirely different energy to the trip, and before long, the relaxing atmosphere gives way to outrageous situations, arguments, romantic complications, and decisions that none of the women would probably make under normal circumstances.
Activities that should be peaceful, including yoga and meditation, become opportunities for chaos. Their attempts to enjoy the perfect holiday are repeatedly interrupted by the very problems they hoped to escape.
What begins as a wellness retreat gradually becomes a weekend of questionable choices and unexpected revelations.
And that is where the movie gets most of its comedy.
My Thoughts on the Story
One thing I like about the premise is that it is easy to relate to.
Most adults understand what it feels like to become overwhelmed by responsibilities. You can spend so much time working, paying bills, raising children, maintaining relationships, and trying to meet everybody’s expectations that you eventually forget what it feels like to enjoy yourself.
The idea of taking a weekend away with friends is therefore appealing.
You do not necessarily need an expensive holiday. Sometimes, spending time with people who understand you is enough to help you feel better.
However, Spa Weekend takes this familiar idea and pushes it towards outrageous comedy. Instead of allowing the characters to enjoy a peaceful retreat, it repeatedly throws ridiculous situations at them.
Some of these situations are entertaining, while others feel as though they were included simply because the filmmakers wanted something outrageous to happen.
That is one of the movie’s biggest weaknesses.
A comedy can be unpredictable without making every scene feel like an attempt to shock the audience. The funniest moments often come from believable personalities reacting to ridiculous circumstances.
When a movie depends too heavily on one chaotic event after another, the humour can become exhausting.
I wanted the friendship between these women to receive more attention. Their history together should give the story plenty of emotional material, particularly because friendships can change dramatically as people grow older.
Instead, the film sometimes seems more interested in the next outrageous situation than in developing the relationships that make the story worth watching.
The Cast Makes the Best of It
One of the biggest reasons I was interested in Spa Weekend was its cast.
Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Anna Faris are all capable comedic performers. Each brings a different personality to the group, creating opportunities for funny exchanges and disagreements.
Leslie Mann as Jane
Jane is one of the women trying to get her life under control while dealing with the pressures that come with adulthood.
Leslie Mann gives the character an uptight, sometimes frustrated personality that works well when things refuse to go according to plan.
Her character represents the person who carefully organises a holiday, makes reservations, and imagines everything running smoothly.
Then someone arrives and destroys the entire plan.
If you have ever travelled with a friend who refuses to follow the itinerary, you can probably understand Jane’s frustration.
Mann does a reasonable job of showing how someone who desperately needs a break can become even more stressed when the break itself becomes another problem to manage.
Isla Fisher as Mel
Mel is arguably the biggest source of chaos in the movie.
Played by Isla Fisher, she is the unpredictable friend whose arrival changes the direction of the entire weekend.
Fisher understands how to play an energetic character who does not always recognise when she has crossed a line. Her performance brings a different rhythm to the group, especially when the other women are attempting to behave like responsible adults.
Mel is the kind of friend who can turn an ordinary evening into a story everyone will be discussing for years.
The problem is that there is a difference between being entertaining and being exhausting. Sometimes, her behaviour makes you laugh. At other times, you may understand why the other women would rather have left her at home.
Still, Fisher gives the movie plenty of energy.
Michelle Buteau as Coco
Michelle Buteau brings confidence and attitude to Coco, another friend dealing with the complications of adult life.
Coco’s personal struggles add relationship tension to the story, and Buteau’s sharp delivery helps some of the dialogue land.
She is particularly effective when the characters are arguing or reacting to somebody else’s ridiculous behaviour.
Her presence also helps prevent the group from feeling like four versions of the same character. The women have different temperaments, different problems, and different ways of handling stress.
That contrast is important in a friendship comedy.
Anna Faris as Sophie
Anna Faris plays Sophie, whose desire to keep things peaceful makes her a useful counterbalance to Mel’s chaotic personality.
Faris has considerable experience with broad comedy, and she brings an awkward, slightly anxious quality to the role.
Her character is often caught between keeping everyone happy and dealing with the consequences of the group’s behaviour.
Anyone who has a friend group with one person who causes trouble and another who constantly tries to prevent arguments will recognise this dynamic.
The cast has enough comedic experience to make several scenes enjoyable. Unfortunately, strong performances cannot always rescue material that does not give the actors enough to work with.
Is Spa Weekend Actually Funny?
This is where my feelings about the movie become mixed.
The film has a promising setup, an experienced cast, and plenty of opportunities for funny situations. It also has a willingness to make fun of wellness culture, which can sometimes take itself a little too seriously.
The movie pokes fun at activities such as guided meditation, goat yoga, and the idea that a luxury retreat can somehow solve every problem in your life.
There is something amusing about watching people arrive at a place designed to help them relax only to become more stressed than they were before.
Imagine paying a lot of money to escape your problems, only to discover that your problems have somehow followed you to the spa.
At that point, even the massage therapist deserves a holiday.
Unfortunately, not every joke works.
Some of the comedy feels predictable, and certain scenes seem designed to create a reaction rather than a genuinely funny moment. The story also relies on familiar getaway-comedy conventions, making it relatively easy to guess the direction of some situations.
Critical reception was largely negative, with reviewers pointing to the screenplay’s weaknesses despite the cast’s talent. Some audience reactions were warmer, suggesting that viewers looking for an uncomplicated, raunchy comedy may still find things to enjoy. <Cite refs={[“turn375133search1″,”turn375133search5”]}/>
For me, the biggest issue is the missed opportunity. With four experienced comedic actresses playing longtime friends, the film could have delivered much sharper humour through their personalities, shared history, and everyday disagreements.
Instead, it sometimes confuses outrageous behaviour with good comedy.
That does not mean there are no entertaining moments. It simply means the movie is less consistently funny than its premise suggests.
What Does the Movie Say About Friendship?
Beneath all the bad decisions and ridiculous situations, Spa Weekend has something to say about friendship.
As we get older, maintaining friendships can become surprisingly difficult.
People get married, have children, change jobs, move to different places, and take on responsibilities that leave little time for socialising.
You can genuinely love your friends and still go months without seeing them.
Sometimes, you do not even realise how much distance has developed until you finally spend time together again.
The women in this movie are reminded that friendship is not only about having fun when everything is going well. It is also about understanding one another’s struggles, accepting differences, and being willing to reconnect even when life has become complicated.
Of course, accepting a friend does not mean approving of every decision they make. Mel’s behaviour creates problems for the group, and the movie occasionally blurs the line between being a supportive friend and tolerating unnecessary drama.
That is an interesting subject the story could have handled with more depth.
A good friendship should allow people to be themselves, but it should also leave room for honesty and accountability.
You should be able to tell a friend when they are making a mistake without turning the conversation into a battle.
And if you are the friend who constantly creates problems, perhaps it is worth asking whether everyone else is laughing with you or simply waiting for you to leave.
The Importance of Taking Care of Yourself
Another theme is self-care.
The women organise their retreat because their normal lives have become overwhelming. Each has personal issues that need attention, and the trip gives them an opportunity to step away from their routines.
I appreciate this idea because many people treat rest as something they must earn after completing every responsibility.
The problem is that responsibilities rarely end.
There is always another bill to pay, another task to finish, another message to answer, or another person who needs something from you.
If you wait until everything in your life is perfectly organised before allowing yourself to rest, you may never take a break.
Self-care does not always mean visiting an expensive resort. It can mean sleeping properly, spending time with friends, enjoying a hobby, taking a walk, or setting boundaries with people who constantly demand your attention.
The movie’s message is that adults deserve time for themselves too.
However, the film also reminds us indirectly that running away from problems for a weekend does not automatically solve them. You may return feeling refreshed, but difficult conversations and important decisions will still be waiting for you.
A holiday can give you the energy to face your problems. It cannot always make those problems disappear.
Direction and Overall Execution
Jon Lucas and Scott Moore have experience with ensemble comedies built around characters making questionable decisions. Their work on The Hangover and Bad Moms makes the basic concept of Spa Weekend understandable.
The film aims to combine outrageous humour with a more heartfelt story about women navigating adulthood.
The challenge is balancing those two elements.
When the movie focuses on the friendships and the pressures the characters face, it has a foundation that audiences can relate to. When it piles on one exaggerated situation after another, the emotional side becomes less convincing.
The story also feels familiar. A group of friends goes away, one person disrupts the plans, arguments erupt, and the characters eventually learn something about themselves.
There is nothing inherently wrong with a familiar formula. Many successful comedies use simple premises.
What matters is the execution.
A predictable story can still be hilarious if the dialogue is sharp, the characters are memorable, and the comic timing is excellent. Unfortunately, Spa Weekend does not maintain that standard consistently.
The result is a film with an appealing cast and an understandable message that does not always make the most of either.
Who Should Watch Spa Weekend?
I would recommend Spa Weekend to viewers who enjoy adult comedies about friendship, holidays, and people making terrible decisions in beautiful locations.
If you like ensemble casts and do not mind raunchy humour, the movie may provide enough entertainment for a casual movie night.
However, if you are expecting a tightly written comedy in which almost every scene delivers a laugh, you may be disappointed.
The film is rated R for language throughout, sexual material, and some drug use, so it is not a family-friendly comedy. <Cite refs={[“turn375133search1″,”turn375133search3”]}/>
It is better suited to adults who are comfortable with that type of humour.
I would also suggest keeping your expectations reasonable. The cast is talented, but the movie does not consistently match its performers’ abilities.
Final Verdict
Spa Weekend (2026) is a comedy with a promising idea: four longtime friends escape their demanding lives for a luxurious retreat, only to discover that their biggest problems may be travelling with them.
Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Anna Faris bring different personalities to the story, and their performances provide some enjoyable moments. The themes of friendship, adulthood, and self-care are also relatable.
Unfortunately, the screenplay relies too heavily on familiar comedy setups and outrageous situations. The humour is inconsistent, and the emotional story could have been developed more effectively.
Would I call it a terrible movie? Not necessarily. But I do think it could have been much better with stronger writing and more attention to the relationships between the characters.
My verdict: 5/10.
It is an average getaway comedy with a talented cast, a relatable message, and a few entertaining moments, but it falls short of delivering the consistently funny experience its premise promises.
The biggest lesson I took from Spa Weekend is that taking care of yourself and maintaining friendships are important parts of adulthood. Life can become so demanding that you forget to make time for the people who once made everything feel easier.
Just remember to choose your travel companions carefully.
Because sometimes, the only thing standing between you and a peaceful weekend is the friend who says, “Relax, I have a plan.”
And somehow, that is always the friend whose plans end in disaster.
James
