Freaky Wednesday And Freakier Friday Are Working. Which Weekday Breaks Out Next?

Probably the two questions I’ve been asked to answer most often, while the particular wording may at times vary, boil down to these:  One, What do I think will happen?  And two, why do I think what happened did?

Those that are better than others at answering the first in a way that proves out to be accurate more frequently get the chance to answer the second.  When I’ve had access to more detailed data and in a world that was much more willing to meet in person and exchange observations and rumors, I was among the ones with a better track record with question number one.  Question number two, being more qualitative in nature, has a perfect track record–since they are no truly right or wrong answers.

So this a week where devoid of any sort of empirical data to contradict me I can throw up against a wall this theory as to what emerged as media’s latest darlings du jour.  Rebooted IP named after a weekday.

Need proof? COLLIDER’s Jake Hodges provided some yesterday:

In the most unsurprising streaming news of the week, the long-awaited return of Wednesday has seen the series top the Netflix streaming charts in the U.S.  With an 82% rating from critics and an 85% score from audiences on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Wednesday Season 2 has so far earned much more success than its first outing, bettering its critical score by 9% at the time of writing. Now the expected chart-topper on Netflix both in the U.S. and worldwide, the series is the most-watched title across both movies and TV, outperforming series such as The Hunting Wives and Eric Bana‘s Untamed, as well as movies like My Oxford Year starring Sofia Carson, and Adam Sandler‘s legacy sequel Happy Gilmore 2.

As did THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER’s Pamela McClintock:

In a double win for the late-summer box office, Disney’s body-swapping comedy Freakier Friday landed on the high end of expectations with a $29 million domestic start to come in second and become the top August opening ever for a PG-rated pic (or G-rated film for that matter). Overseas, it launched to $15.5 million for a global bow of $45 million – the exact cost of its modest $45 million budget before marketing…the Freaky Friday sequel is the second win in a row for big-screen studio comedies, which have become an endangered species in the streaming era.

And is the typically the case with Monday morning quarterbacks, you could choke your browsers with the myriad of theories that emerge that try to explain those results.  ELLE’s Panashe Nyadundu seems to think it’s because of reunions with what and who we’ve liked for decades:

As Nevermore Academy reopens its doors, you can expect to see familiar faces, including fan-favorites like Emma Myers, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Fred Armisen; but the new season also brings on fresh faces such as Steve Buschemi, Lady Gaga, and Joanna Lumley. 

Lumley is almost unrecognizable from her vampy, campy days on ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. one of the more popular British import comedies of the 70s and 80s, filling the role of Grandmama.  But at least gets a credit sooner than the obscure character actress who initially went uncredited in the 60s ADDAMS FAMILY series.  We needed an entire season to learn who Blossom Rock was, and I will say Lumley has  far better makeup artists.

As for FF, there’s a strong belief that the deep connection it has with the millennial fan base that watched the 2003 version as kids is driving the reconnection.  ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY’s Joey Nolfi offered his snarky thoughts:

The on-screen re-teaming of (Jamie Lee) Curtis and fellow Freaky Friday star Lindsay Lohan was a cast reunion 22 years in the making, but the stars aren’t the only ones making a grand return. The sequel sets in motion a maximized body-swapping narrative that sees Tess (Curtis) and Anna (Lohan) switch places with Anna’s daughter (Julia Butters) and soon-to-be stepdaughter, Lily (Sophia Hammons). At the end, Freakier Friday wraps things up with a final nod to nostalgia in the form of the revival of Curtis’ original Diane von Furstenberg dress from the prior installment.

For example, his top Monday vote getter is NETFLIX’s 2017 WHAT HAPPENED TO MONDAY?, a well-respected early driver that helped get the platform to the point where WEDNESDAY could be a global hit out of the box.  But there’s also FIRST MONDAY IN OCTOBER, the 1981 comedy that featured Jill Clayburgh as a pioneering female judge, as well Showtime’s quirky Don Cheadle comedy BLACK MONDAY. one that I have warm fuzzies for both the fact I worked extensively on it for Sony and it happened to cast people I revere in guest roles. His Tuesday list includes the likes of TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE, a poignant work about a dying mentor that might be a tad too sad to resonate today, but also the European travel farce IF IT’S TUESDAY THIS MUST BE BELGIUM that could certainly be recast and retrofitted for modern times, especially considering what could transpire in today’s Amsterdam and Brussels.  But do forget Thursdays for now.  Nothing got more than five votes, and the one that did was SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE WEEKEND UPDATE THURSDAY.