‘Father of the Bride’ is Most-Watched Original Movie on HBO Max

The latest remake of Father of the Bride starring Andy Garcia and Gloria Estefan is officially HBO Max’s biggest movie premiere for an original film for the streaming service, Deadline exclusively reported. But its success wasn’t just in the U.S., Mexico ranks as the second-strongest country for Father of the Bride viewing on HBO Max to date after the U.S. The film’s director, Gary Alazraki, is writer and director of Mexico’s record-breaking dark comedy Nosotros los Nobles (We Are The Nobles). Father of the Bride was among the top 5 movies in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Chile and Argentina, according to a tweet posted by Estefan where she wrote, “Thank you, Latin America for coming to the wedding and making us #1!”  Adria Arjona, who plays the bride-to-be Sofia, also shared the news on Instagram writing, “Not over this yet. Thank you so much for watching.”

Gracias , Latino America, por decir PRESENTE en la boda y ponernos en el #1 ! 🎶☀️✌️😘❤️👰🤵‍♂️Thank you, Latin America for coming to the wedding and making us #1 ! #fatherofthebride #padredelanovia @hbomax pic.twitter.com/WnEl7zDHEg

— Gloria Estefan (@GloriaEstefan) June 18, 2022

The film follows Cuban American architect Billy Herrera who is on the brink of a divorce after decades of marriage to Ingrid (Estefan). Just as they decide to end their marriage they learn Sofia is engaged to Adan Castillo (Diego Boneta). The film features a Latinx cast and was written by Matt Lopez, who is of Cuban descent, who shared with HipLatina the intention behind the film.

I’ve spent most of my adult life in LA, where people just assume from my last name that I’m Mexican American and I must have grown up eating Mexican food. So, I knew from the beginning that food would play a big role. Also, music — the battle between the mariachis and the Cuban orchestra and the eventual coming together of the musical traditions,” Lopez says. “That’s what this version of Father of the Bride is all about. As Latinos, we are not a uniculture. We have our own unique elements, but also many commonalities of which we can all be proud.

The film was released on June 16 ahead of Father’s Day weekend and its success in LATAM comes after HBO Max launched there in June 2021. It’s the third iteration of the film based on the 1949 novel by Edward Streeter following the beloved 1991 film starring Steve Martin and Diane Keaton and the 1950 version starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. While Lopez was a fan of the other films, he shared that he wanted to approach this remake with a new twist by adding the divorce storyline.

“It adds a whole new element of farce to the movie. Can Andy and Gloria avoid killing each other long enough to walk their daughter down the aisle? And might they even fall back in love in the process?”

Father of the Bride is available now on HBO Max