‹ All movies
Bridesmaids poster

Bridesmaids

125 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Kristen Wiig Annie Walker
Maya Rudolph Lillian Donovan
Rose Byrne Helen Harris III
Melissa McCarthy Megan Price
Ellie Kemper Becca
Chris O'Dowd Officer Nathan Rhodes
Jill Clayburgh Judy Walker
Rebel Wilson Brynn
Michael Hitchcock Don Cholodecki
Ben Falcone Air Marshal Jon
Terry Crews Rodney
Jon Hamm Ted (uncredited)
Annie Mumolo Nervous woman on plane
Andy Buckley Helen's husband

Bridesmaids | The Rewatchables

Explore episodeClose episode

Producer credits not yet identified.

Roger Ebert's review

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:32Read transcript
  • Roger Ebert, still alive when the film came out, gave it three and a half stars.
  • The review is quoted calling it a more or less deliberate attempt to cross the chick flick with the raunch comedy that proves women are the equal of men in vulgarity, sexual frankness, lust, vulnerability, over-drinking and insecurity.
  • The review is called kind of weird, though the three and a half stars were good; chick flick is noted as a term no longer used.

Most Rewatchable Scene

Bridal-shop food-poisoning dress fitting

In the discussion (29)
Approx. transcript time · 00:29:24Read transcript
  • The first hangout lunch between Annie and Lillian opens the category, with Annie's penis impression called first class and possibly improvised.
  • Apatow understood the value of four-minute hangout scenes establishing why characters are friends, a template later seen even in The Hangover.
  • Jill Clayburgh, a major late-70s star, plays Annie's mom; her chicken-coop scene is longer in the extended version, and the character was toned down after she died.
  • The dueling engagement-party speeches were largely improvised; Rose Byrne invented fake Thai and a sensible Thai sentence was dubbed in.
  • The rest of the engagement party works too: Megan's introduction (dolphin telepathy, "I survived. I thrived.") and Annie being repeatedly paired with random men, where everyone else, not Annie, raises her single status.
  • The speeches push secondhand mortification until guests are holding their glasses up waiting to drink.
  • Asked about memorable wedding speeches, one participant recalls a best-man speech for best friend Jeff 23-24 years earlier that ended on hoping to someday find what the couple had.
  • Every character introduction before the speeches is distinct and funny, including Rita on her teenage boys and Becca with her husband after a Disneyland honeymoon.
  • Rose Byrne is one of the most underrated aspects of the film, also great in Neighbors (on the 2021 schedule); the dueling speeches felt more cringe-inducing than the bridal-shop scene.
  • Per the research, Byrne had been a dramatic actress hired as a Glenn Close-type villain foil, with nobody knowing she was this funny; she has the hardest, passive-aggressive part.
  • The food-poisoning dress-fitting scene is the iconic one; it was not in the shooting script and was added after Apatow and Paul Feig pushed for one more physical-comedy scene.
  • Setup details include the stray dog at the Brazilian restaurant and theme suggestions of Pixar from Becca and Fight Club from Megan.
  • The gross-out sequence was written in one participant's outline under most rewatchable scene before the rewatch; favorite lines include "I just need to get off this white carpet" and "Look away."
  • Annie refusing to concede anything to Helen, looking worse with each cut and inching a Jordan almond toward her mouth, may be the funniest part.
  • It is one of the funniest scenes of all time for any age; after it was shown to a five-year-old son, "look away" became a household running joke.
  • The immaculate white bridal shop makes the chaos funnier.
  • Asked which sick character they would be, one participant picks the character who throws up on someone else; another says they would be the "look away" character, like a dog that avoids eye contact.
  • Megan should have owned using the sink; the janitor's next-morning cleanup was on one participant's unanswerable-questions list.
  • The plane trip, a spouse's favorite scene, is a great 10 minutes: McCarthy's air-marshal bit and Annie escalating to "Welcome to Germany."
  • Good ensembles work in any pairing, compared with the Russo brothers' pairings in Infinity War and Endgame; seating Rita and Becca together to discuss their sex lives is a delight.
  • The film shows up in gifs a lot, like Anchorman: "look away" and Annie's sarcastic reply to Helen's Vegas restaurant offer.
  • Planes are not funny places, especially since 9/11 and now the pandemic, so unlocking comedy there works.
  • Annie getting fired over the fight with the teenage girl at the store is a smaller favorite.
  • The bridal shower, including the bleached-asshole exchange, is another set piece; Lillian's "talk behind my back like a normal person" line is praised, and Megan takes the golden retriever puppies home.
  • Megan's pep talk, which opens with Annie watching Cast Away, is nominated as a quieter pick blending humor and heart.
  • McCarthy was the film's stunning revelation; she was an improv legend largely unknown to the public, compared with a John Belushi documentary, and was nominated for an Oscar.
  • Annie repeatedly driving past the cop to get his attention is a spouse's favorite.
  • Jon Hamm's scenes are flagged as a likely heat check, including the "open for biz" lap-nap line.
  • The final pick is the shit scene, with agreement.

What’s Aged the Best?

Jon Hamm as Ted; the gate-swing opening; Wendi McLendon-Covey as Rita; the $12 workout; Annie's store scenes; Jill Clayburgh casting; the cupcake scene and baking; Annie's mom's paintings; money and wedding absurdity; weddings as a movie trope; Helen's stepkids and lines; Wilson Phillips ending; ensemble performances; R-rated scatological humor; Milwaukee

In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 00:59:35Read transcript
  • Jon Hamm, in three scenes, escapes the Don Draper typecasting by playing the ultimate douchebag; "I really want you to leave, but I don't know how to say it without sounding like a dick" is the iconic line.
  • The opening gate swing of shame and Annie sneaking back into bed establish her character in two minutes.
  • Ted is a textbook narcissist everyone sees through, and making him horrible at sex is a great choice.
  • The rich douchebag in relation to a woman reverses usual comedy roles; Hamm looks like an actor on vacation in a well-written part of nine or ten minutes, down to the Porsche.
  • Wendi McLendon-Covey as Rita is so good it is puzzling she did not break out more; she is a Kim Cattrall 2.0 type.
  • Jennifer Coolidge was considered as an alternative for Rita but would have been distracting; McLendon-Covey is more subtle and would not be recast.
  • Rita's lines, including the semen blanket and her nine-year-old telling her to fuck off over pizza, remind viewers that married life is not idyllic.
  • Other holdovers: stealing Terry Crews's class to save $12, Annie's bad store work, the Jill Clayburgh casting, and the Bo Cosby joke.
  • The Fiona Apple song over the cupcake scene is noted, with Maya Rudolph married to Fiona Apple's ex Paul Thomas Anderson; the scene shows how broken Annie is about baking.
  • Baking in general in the Great British Bake Off era, including the cupcake leaf and the carrot cake, holds up.
  • Annie's mom's celebrity paintings, including Taylor Swift, are a subtle touch; her AA character outs people, including Bo Cosby.
  • Money, and how dumb and expensive weddings are, have aged well; the wedding industrial complex is real.
  • Weddings work as a movie trope because they put all the characters in one place; weddings also drive people crazy.
  • One participant recounts the only fight with their dad, three weeks before their wedding, over inviting a cousin's boyfriend to a guest list capped around 100-125.
  • Helen's stepkids and her 11 or 12 passive-aggressive lines, including the drink-passing line on the plane, are favorites.
  • It is nine golden retriever puppies; the Wilson Phillips ending and dancing hold up.
  • The ensemble performances, scatological humor and explicit R-rated comedy hold up; Milwaukee and Pittsburgh are underrated cities, and the "cock baby" graffiti is a favorite.

What’s Aged the Worst?

The cop character; the Apatow rock-bottom formula; runtime; puppies as party favors

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:11:24Read transcript
  • The cop is the weak spot of the movie; none of his scenes had come up among the memorable ones, unlike Hamm's perfectly written part.
  • A friendly cop joking about shooting people would not appear in 2020.
  • His motivation is unclear: he runs radar traps all day, has an Irish accent, and buys $200 of baking supplies after one night.
  • In the baking scene he was trying to be sweet but was presumptuous; Chris O'Dowd is Irish and was reportedly meant to be American until they kept his real voice.
  • Rebel Wilson and Rose Byrne are Australian; O'Dowd and Byrne are good together in Juliet, Naked.
  • The cop was also one participant's recasting nomination, deferred to that category.
  • The Apatow formula of a rock bottom with about 27 minutes left and a late rally feels familiar from other movies.
  • The runtime is too long; movies and documentaries should be the right length, not padded by 20 minutes.
  • Funny People is loved but clearly 30 minutes too long; Apatow's best scenes come in the first two-thirds.
  • Agreement that the final third runs long; Apatow throws a great first six innings, joked as a Blake Snow outing.
  • Giving out puppies as party favors is irresponsible, and Megan keeps them in her van during the party; the scene is worth it, and the pink berets make the callback pay off.

Casting What-Ifs

Rebel Wilson and Busy Philipps for Megan; Mindy Kaling for Lillian; Greta Gerwig and Judy Greer; Paul Rudd's cut blind date

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:28Read transcript
  • Several actresses, including Rebel Wilson and Busy Philipps, auditioned for Melissa McCarthy's part.
  • Maya Rudolph won the Lillian part over Mindy Kaling, judged the right choice.
  • Greta Gerwig and Judy Greer auditioned for roles but did not make it.
  • A Paul Rudd blind-date scene with Annie was cut and is on a home-video release; cutting Rudd is baffling.
  • An unrated-cut blind date leaves Annie stuck with the man's seven-year-old; funny but it does not belong.
  • Paul Rudd or Jason Sudeikis would have been good in the Rhodes role, held for the recasting category.

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Annie's boss at the store (the Best in Show actor); Andy Buckley; Tim Heidecker

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:18:44Read transcript
  • Three nominees are announced; the first is the air marshal, played by Ben Falcone, who is married to Melissa McCarthy in real life and was unknown by name before the research.
  • Annie's boss at the store is called the clear pick, identified only as Hamilton Swan in Best in Show; a voice that shouts "Oh, Busy Bee" whenever he appears calls it their pick.
  • He also appears in the Rachel Bloom comedy crazy ex-girlfriend, and seeing him prompts the Leo finger-point.
  • Wendi McLendon-Covey might qualify.
  • Another participant adds a couple of That Guys: Andy Buckley, Dave Wallace from The Office, in a tiny role, and Tim Heidecker as Doug, whose scenes were apparently cut.
  • Tim Heidecker is big in this participant's household (Tim and Eric; I Think You Should Leave), and it is weird he does nothing in the film. — Mina Kimes
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:17Read transcript
  • It is unclear whether Doug was cut as superfluous.
  • The cop is the recast: it is clearly a Paul Rudd part; Jason Sudeikis and Bill Hader are other options, and this participant would personally go with Paul Rudd, never having felt O'Dowd was the good guy.
  • This participant would never say no to adding Paul Rudd, and suggests Tom Cruise as the douchebag boyfriend in Hamm's role. — Mallory Rubin
  • Pushback: it can only be Hamm because the film came out at peak Mad Men.
  • Michael Peña is another option for the cop.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Two weeks of cast improvisation; Maya Rudolph's concealed pregnancy; Hamm uncredited; Ted's 90210 house; title troubles; Jill Clayburgh's last film; Vegas rewrite after The Hangover; Rebel Wilson and her on-screen brother as roommates; McCarthy's Guy Fieri model

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:03Read transcript
  • The cast improvised together for two weeks, much of it used in the film.
  • Maya Rudolph was pregnant during filming, concealed with belts and props.
  • Going uncredited was a choice by Hamm so audiences would not be confused, being seen as a serious actor then.
  • Ted's house is the same house as Kelly Taylor's from 90210.
  • Apatow did not want the title Bridesmaids; Maid of Honor was planned until a Patrick Dempsey movie took it.
  • Titles are hard: The Ringer's name was debated on a whiteboard in a Taft Street house in 2015, while Mina's podcast added her dog Lenny's name.
  • It was Jill Clayburgh's last movie; her late-70s Burt Reynolds film Starting Over is one of the best Boston movies.
  • The original script reached Las Vegas for a bachelorette, but after The Hangover Apatow had it rewritten so Annie melts down on the plane.
  • Rebel Wilson and the actor playing her brother ended up living together as roommates.
  • McCarthy told GQ she modeled the role on Guy Fieri and wanted short, bleached, spiky hair, per the GQ oral history.
In the discussion (13)
Approx. transcript time · 01:27:10Read transcript
  • Maybe the film is Guy Fieri's Apex Mountain.
  • Kristen Wiig: yes, while still on SNL.
  • Jon Hamm: definitely, with Mad Men and The Town happening at the same time.
  • Melissa McCarthy is a tough one; The Heat is praised, and this is called her best performance, though her New York Times best-actors-of-the-century listing is debated.
  • Maya Rudolph: not her apex; her SNL stretch and The Good Place judge run rank higher.
  • Rose Byrne: no; Neighbors is more likely. Apatow: probably not, since he did not direct it.
  • For wedding movies it is a finals between My Best Friend's Wedding and this, possibly adding Wedding Crashers.
  • Paul Feig, who created Freaks and Geeks and made Ghostbusters, definitely peaked here critically and commercially.
  • For shit scenes in movies, Succession and Harold and Kumar are cited and it deserves a follow-up pod, but this would be the peak; it is agreed as Apex Mountain for diarrhea in a movie.
  • A Lamar Jackson aside becomes the joke podcast Leave Lamar Alone.
  • Chris O'Dowd: yes, joked against Thor: The Dark World.
  • Wilson Phillips peaked in the early 90s, but the film gives them a belated or second Apex Mountain.
  • Milwaukee's apex was Laverne and Shirley.

Picking Nits

Lillian dumping Annie; Lillian's disappearance; the Vegas diversion; convenience-store carrots; Helen choosing Vegas; Helen's husband's wealth; Doug's absence; Megan and Doug as siblings; capitalized email words; outdoor cookie and fountain; Annie's mom absent from the drive

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:33:54Read transcript
  • Was Lillian out of line for dumping Annie as maid of honor? Everyone felt it did not sit right.
  • Lillian's disappearance before the wedding, needed for conflict, falls apart.
  • A diverted plane should not have stopped a rich Helen from getting to Vegas.
  • Who buys carrots at a convenience store?
  • Helen would not have pushed for Vegas; she would have picked Europe or New Orleans.
  • Helen's husband has an unexplained $50 million-plus Chicago-area estate; Doug works for him, so why is Lillian skimping on a $12 workout?
  • Doug barely appears; how long Lillian and Doug's marriage lasts is on one participant's unanswerable list; "he's been calling me dude a lot" is a favorite line.
  • Megan and Doug do not look like siblings.
  • Annie capitalizes random words in her emails, like Lakehouse, noticed from an editor's eye.
  • Helen putting the giant cookie and chocolate fountain outdoors is a mistake, since weather cannot be controlled.
  • Why was Annie's mom not in the car on the drive to the shower if they were living together?

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie

"I did not know that it was your diary. I thought it was a very sad handwritten book."; "Why can't you just be happy for me and then go home and talk behind my back like a normal person?"; "I cracked a blanket in half"; "I'm glad he's single because I'm going to climb that like a tree."; "It's called humor, learn about it."

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:39:07Read transcript
  • Picks: Brynn's diary line, shared with Mina; Lillian's "why can't you just be happy for me" line; and Rita's blanket-cracking semen speech. — Mallory Rubin
  • Adds Megan's early "climb that like a tree" line as something since copied, and Ted's "It's called humor, learn about it" as having entered the lexicon, after recalling Hamm lines like "that cop talks weird." — Mina Kimes

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Irish cop in Milwaukee; Annie's hospitalization; hungriest bakery item; the cake left for Nathan; Ted's wealth and his number one and two; Annie's mom and Bill; Rita and Becca in Vegas; getting drunk so fast; the future of Annie's bakery

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:41:07Read transcript
  • How did a cop with an Irish accent end up in Milwaukee?
  • Should Annie have been briefly hospitalized after the shower? One says yes; the others were lukewarm, one saying Annie was going through life's normal ebbs and flows.
  • Asked which bakery item made them hungriest, the answer is the cake Annie left for Nathan; how many days did it sit out with raccoons before he ate it? — Mallory Rubin
  • Nobody would leave a cake out; leaving it there was a show.
  • What is the source of Ted's wealth, and if Annie was number three, who were numbers one and two?
  • What happened between Annie's mom and Bill after she set them up? He was expected as a wedding callback; the Air Marshal callback is the best.
  • What happens between Rita and Becca if the plane reaches Vegas?
  • How did they get drunk so fast on the plane? Altitude is suggested.
  • What is the future of Annie's bakery: does she reopen with Nathan under the cock baby name? A bachelorette-party bakery called Cockbaby is pitched as a business idea.
  • The final unanswerable is Annie's own question: why is an Irish cop in Milwaukee?
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:41:55Read transcript
  • One participant hopes they reach the Brandy Booth category because of remarkable animal showings.
  • The Brandy Booth category is acknowledged as not done, but the raccoons' performance is praised, along with the puppies, swans, a rabbit and a possible hedgehog; it is a good animal movie.

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

Annie's mom; a golden retriever puppy; the Willie Nelson portrait; the wedding dress; Ted's car; the sink; a radar gun

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:42:55Read transcript
  • One participant would take Annie's mom, or a golden retriever puppy.
  • A cat owner would take the Willie Nelson portrait from Annie's mom's home.
  • The dresses and costume design convey character; the wedding dress is an Apex Mountain for the wedding dress as a physical prop, if not for wedding movies.
  • Ted's car is a corny pick.
  • The sink, installed in a small bathroom with a museum plaque or the "look away" picture above it.
  • The movie made one participant want a radar gun.
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:47:58Read transcript
  • Melissa McCarthy is the answer, echoed with "That's what I had, too" and agreement that it has to be her.
  • Wiig merits a nod as lead and co-writer, but McCarthy became an icon, her career skyrocketed and she got an Oscar nomination.
  • It is a tough beat for Wiig, the most important character and co-writer, but McCarthy clearly won.
  • Rose Byrne is the Sammy Watkins of the movie next to the two stars.
  • Wiig is the performance you recognize more on later viewings; McCarthy knocks your socks off the first time, like John Belushi in Animal House.
Podcast choices
Speaker not identified
Melissa McCarthy
Speaker not identified
Melissa McCarthy

How Long Do They Stay Together?

About two weeks; a Cockbaby relaunch before Annie moves on

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:49:28Read transcript
  • One participant gives Annie and the cop about two weeks, not seeing the chemistry.
  • A follow-on scenario has them relaunching Cockbaby before Annie realizes she does not need anyone, wins a James Beard Award and ignores Ted in another Porsche.
  • A twist adds she gets canceled five years later when shower video surfaces.
  • If it were Paul Rudd they would be together forever, making the cop the biggest miscasting in the movie.

More from the conversation

A Ringer network plug mentions The Watch, The Big Picture and Binge Mode, with Mallory Rubin about to appear, then a trailer cold open.
Approx. transcript time · 00:01:13Read transcript
The episode starts 2021 with Bridesmaids, called better than 2020 and the highest-grossing R-rated female comedy ever.
Approx. transcript time · 00:02:04Read transcript
Asked if it is the funniest female comedy ever, the answer is the funniest female ensemble comedy, with Mean Girls also among the funniest movies; this was a fifth viewing.
Approx. transcript time · 00:02:30Read transcript
Nominees for funniest female comedy: Bridesmaids, Mean Girls, Girls Trip, The Other Woman and Trainwreck, plus Clueless added by a spouse.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:12Read transcript
Clueless and The Rescuers Down Under were this participant's most-watched youth movies; Broad City is added as a television consideration.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:12Read transcript
Men are irrelevant in the film; the only male characters we get to know are the cop and the air marshal, with Jon Hamm's Ted in two and a half scenes.
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:03Read transcript
The film is too long and meanders but has six or seven banger scenes that keep you watching on cable.
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:30Read transcript
The bridal-salon scene is among the funniest of the last 20 years; the film prompted think pieces, but nothing inside it is political, which was quietly revolutionary.
Approx. transcript time · 00:05:18Read transcript
Mid-2000s SNL female stars, 30 Rock and Mean Girls led here; in 2011 it made $288 (ASR "billion") and was the highest-grossing Apatow movie.
Approx. transcript time · 00:06:05Read transcript
Beyond proving women can be raunchy, the film has real arcs about friendship, jealousy and shame, and the runtime is needed to hold them together.
Approx. transcript time · 00:07:06Read transcript
The Annie-Lillian friendship is the favorite part, set up by the workout with Terry Crews and the lunch; it recalls Booksmart.
Approx. transcript time · 00:08:52Read transcript
The opening lunch, with Annie impersonating Ted's penis, is a hidden gem that makes the dueling speeches land; the Wilson Phillips sing-along shows real friendship.
Approx. transcript time · 00:09:51Read transcript
Apatow spotted talent early (Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Steve Carell, Amy Schumer, Pete Davidson) and told Wiig after Knocked Up to write her own vehicle, which she co-wrote with Annie Mumolo (ASR "Mamulu"), the nervous plane passenger.
Approx. transcript time · 00:11:43Read transcript
Asked why this was Wiig's movie peak, the answer confesses not loving her SNL characters such as Target Lady; her understated style shines in small moments like the fresh lemonade and the Jordan almond.
Approx. transcript time · 00:13:39Read transcript
Some SNL alumni like Mike Myers and Adam Sandler go big while others like Bill Hader are better subtle; Wonder Woman 1984 is skipped after people were revolted by it.
Approx. transcript time · 00:14:57Read transcript
Wiig's and Kate McKinnon's SNL characters never resonated, but her physical comedy here, like attacking the giant cookie, is at the highest level.
Approx. transcript time · 00:15:32Read transcript
This participant never felt drawn to Wiig's SNL work; the film was a Kristen Wiig awakening, noting her Oscar-nominated co-writing and lead.
Approx. transcript time · 00:15:48Read transcript
Should Annie have been hospitalized for insanity after the bridal-shower meltdown?
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:09Read transcript
A female lead playing a loser who hits rock bottom repeatedly is a male archetype new for a woman; Annie's rock bottom may be the biggest without a crime.
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:38Read transcript
Annie is culpable, but Helen stole her Paris shower theme and Lillian could have been a better friend.
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:06Read transcript
Lillian cutting Annie off after the trip is likened to firing Anthony Lynn; a spouse whose favorite movie of the last 10-15 years this is thinks Lillian is a bad friend.
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:48Read transcript
Class drives the film: Lillian is entering a wealthier class and never deals with it; the Friends concert-tickets episode captured the same theme.
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:20Read transcript
Class is baked into Milwaukee versus Chicago and the club membership; Helen is the foil, with the $800 dress, the first-class ticket and "more community in coach."
Approx. transcript time · 00:23:34Read transcript
Maya Rudolph's near-unanimous approval hides that Lillian is a bad friend; the film is more about money dividing friends than romance.
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:52Read transcript
Asked about hanging out with Stu Gatz, the reply is "I'm cheap as hell" and still a woman of the people.
Approx. transcript time · 00:26:54Read transcript
The film got two Oscar nominations, Supporting Actress for Melissa McCarthy and Original Screenplay, without winning because comedies never get respect.
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:13Read transcript
Sign-off plugs Mina Kimes on NFL Live and her podcast and Mallory on Binge Mode, plus the joke premiere of Leave Lamar Alone on January 12th.
Approx. transcript time · 01:50:35Read transcript