The Five-Star Weekend premiered on Peacock on July 9, and by August 5 it had already been renewed for a second season. When a show moves that fast, you know it connected with people, and the numbers absolutely back that up.
According to Peacock, the series is the streamer’s most-watched scripted original ever, with 2.1 billion minutes viewed based on preliminary Nielsen data. On a platform that has been around for years, that is not a small achievement.
Jennifer Garner, who stars in and executive produces the series, said it perfectly:
“Regina, Chloe, Gemma, D’Arcy and I have had the best time talking to people about Five-Star Weekend. We’re so happy you love it as much as we loved making it for you. If you’re curious about what’s going to happen next, imagine how we feel! We’re grateful to Elin, Bekah, our producers, directors and Peacock for hosting the ultimate girls’ weekend that will be season 2.”
What Is The Five-Star Weekend About?
The premise of the novel is one of those ideas that is so perfectly constructed you can’t believe it hadn’t been done before.
The official series description reads:
“Unable to move forward, the death starts to expose the cracks in Hollis’s picture-perfect life: her strained marriage, her complicated relationship with her daughter, and her growing pursuit of validation from her fans. In an effort to overcome grief and find herself again, Hollis gets the idea to host a weekend away at her house on Nantucket with three friends from different stages in her life. Set against a luxurious and coastal backdrop, the five ‘stars’ develop in ways they could never imagine as boundaries are pushed and secrets are exposed.”
Each friendship Hollis brings to the table carries its own complicated history:
Tatum is her best friend from childhood and is battling a possible cancer diagnosis, a disease that took her own mother’s life. Dru-Ann, her college best friend and former roommate, is a sportscaster dealing with a public scandal after she accuses a tennis star of faking a mental health crisis.
Brooke is the friend from her motherhood years, who has just discovered her husband is once again behaving inappropriately with a woman at work. And then there’s Gigi, a stranger to all of them, including Hollis, who reached out through her food blog and carries secrets none of them could have anticipated.
The Cast and Creative Team
The creative team assembled here could not be better suited to this material.
The drama series stars Jennifer Garner alongside D’Arcy Carden, Gemma Chan, Regina Hall, Chloë Sevigny, Timothy Olyphant, and Harlow Jane.
Bekah Brunstetter, who created the series and serves as showrunner, has spoken about what the story meant to her:
“It’s such a joy and privilege to create a world that people want to keep living in. I’m so thrilled by the chance to give fans of the show more time with the stars, and dig even further into these incredible characters. Knowing how deeply committed they are to this trip, I can’t wait to take them on their next adventure.”
What to Expect from The Five-Star Weekend Season 2?
Season 2 will venture into entirely new territory because the show has now moved beyond the source novel.
Creator Bekah Brunstetter has shared her vision for where things could go. She envisions the core group of women going on future trips together, potentially to a new destination for each season.
She has also floated the idea of a new fifth “star” joining the group, someone whose story could be developed in collaboration with a willing actor.
“You could just find someone who really wants to do it, some amazing actor who’s really interested in doing this, and talk to them about what they want to play and what they feel like their strengths are and what they’re interested in,” Brunstetter said.
As for the cast, options are in place for Jennifer Garner, D’Arcy Carden, Regina Hall, and Chloë Sevigny to return for Season 2. Those who have watched the full first season will understand, without further spoilers, why Gemma Chan’s situation is less straightforward, and why the question of what happens to her character is one of the most compelling threads heading into a second season.
There is no confirmed release date for Season 2 yet. Given the turnaround time from Season 1, a 2027 premiere seems like a reasonable expectation, but nothing is official.
Book Your Own Weekend Before Season 2 Arrives
If you watched the show before reading the book, do yourself a favor and go back to Elin Hilderbrand’s novel now. Reading it after the series gives you a completely different experience.
You’ll see the choices the writers made, what they kept, what they expanded, and what they invented entirely for the screen.
And if you haven’t watched Season 1 yet, all eight episodes are on Peacock right now.
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