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“The Five Star Weekend” has been renewed for a second season at Peacock.
Based on Elin Hilderbrand’s 2023 novel of the same name, the drama series stars Jennifer Garner as Hollis Shaw, a famous cook and author who is grieving
her late husband. 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 — childhood, college, motherhood — and one surprise guest. 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.” Along with Garner, the cast includes D’Arcy Carden, Gemma Chan, Regina Hall, Chloë Sevigny, Harlow Jane and Timothy Olyphant.
“The Five Star Weekend” was originally billed as a limited series, though creator Bekah Brunstetter consistently indicated she was interested in expanding the story beyond the events of the novel. “I’ve got a lot of ideas,” she said in an interview with Variety. “From the beginning, we thought, ‘In a perfect world, well, there’s five Stars. Who is the new fifth Star?’ That’s a fun setup, and then you could focus a little bit on a different Star every season. So you get five trips, five Stars, or four trips and a new fifth Star every season.” She also noted that the writers have “a ski idea. I think we would do another warm [location] and then a cold, but it would go to different places, like a ‘White Lotus’ vibe.”
According to NBCUniversal, “The Five Star Weekend” is Peacock’s most-watched scripted series of all time in terms of overall reach. It premiered on July 9 and has reached 2.1 billion minutes watched to date, and ranked among Nielsen’s top five streaming original series in its first two weeks. The release of the project also boosted Hilderbrand’s novel to the Top 10 of the New York Times bestseller list.
Brunstetter executive produced “The Five Star Weekend” alongside Sue Naegle, Ali Krug, Minkie Spiro, Jennifer Garner, Merri Howard, Beth Schacter and Hilderbrand. Minkie Spiro directed the pilot. Universal Global Television is the studio.
“Audiences have completely embraced this wholly relatable story of friendship, and what it means to reconnect with the people in your life who truly make a difference,” reads a statement from Lisa Katz, president of scripted content at NBC and Peacock. “A huge thank you to our amazing cast, writers, directors, producers and to our magical crew who all worked tirelessly to bring Elin’s enormously popular book to the screen, and to the audiences who enjoyed watching this summer escape as much as we enjoyed making it.”
“It’s such a joy and privilege to create a world that people want to keep living in,” said Brunstetter. “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.”
“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,” said Garner. “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 two.”
