“Freakier Friday” is a cute sequel to a cute 2003 remake of a cute 1976 movie that has been remade and sequelized several other times and comes from a book. Writer Jordan Weiss shows an underrated talent in mining laughs out of such a well-hewn premise, sometimes riffing on the 2003 film (Jamie Lee Curtis’ famous “I’m the Cryptkeeper!” becomes “I’m decomposing!”).
I smiled through most of the film – although as is the modern wont, it has to be 13 minutes longer than its predecessor (though it’s not as indulgent as “Happy Gilmore 2”). Weiss and director Nisha Ganatra have a good sense of pace and the audience’s intelligence level.
Not single for long
Single parents Anna Coleman (Lindsay Lohan) and Eric Reyes (Manny Jacinto) meet when called before the principal because their feuding daughters (Julia Butters’ Harper and Sophia Hammons’ Lily) had started a food fight. The principal (X Mayo) sardonically notes that it’s rare to have such attractive parents in her office, and she even sets up their first date for them, as if she’s moving the obvious plot along for us.
“Freakier Friday” (2025)
Director: Nisha Ganatra
Writers: Jordan Weiss (screenplay, story), Elyse Hollander (screenplay)
Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Lindsay Lohan, Julia Butters, Sophia Hammons
The filmmakers navigate a desire to make fun of 2025 ultra-aware culture and also toe Disney’s PC line. The principal gets a face full of key lime pie in the food fight and notes as the scene-closing zinger that she needs to be taken to the emergency room because she’s allergic to key lime pie. Funny.
On the other hand, we’re told twice that Anna has “chosen to be a single parent” and this is not a commentary nor a plot point. Disney just wants us to know she was not irresponsible, nor did she marry an irresponsible person, nor did the father die. Since adoption is never mentioned, my impression is she had Harper via IVF.
“Freakier Friday” wanes as it goes along because we’re increasingly cued that this is going to be the same ole safe thing. Anna is as responsible a mother as Tess (Curtis) was 22 years ago. Harper is as self-centered-yet-decent as Anna was 22 years ago.
There’s an extra layer because the switch includes four people this time. Anna’s mind goes into Harper’s body (and vice versa), providing the classic mother-daughter switch. But also, Tess and Lily switch, giving us a teen-to-retirement-age swap.
A who’s who of characters
My brain spent some time on “OK, so this person is really that person …” but mostly it’s not a logistical exercise but a comedic exercise. Weiss doesn’t care all that much about the rules. Lily’s British accent goes away in Tess’ body, yet her word choice remains British. Lily has some memory issues when in Tess’ body. The teens (in the older bodies) note the “virus” on their phones that makes the text bigger, but shouldn’t they appreciate that since their vision would’ve gotten worse?
I’m a sucker for age-gap humor, so I chuckled when Lily (in Tess’ body) aims to look natural at the record store by looking for “old person music”: Coldplay. Curtis gets to do the physical gags we’d expect – Lily (in Tess’ body) notes that her brain is commanding her body to get off the floor but it’s not responding: “It’s like screaming into the abyss.”
Refreshingly, Lohan gets in on the physical comedy this time, as Harper in Anna’s body must flirt with Chad Michael Murray’s Jake. (An oddity: Harper seems to think Jake is hot. Would a ninth-grader think that of a 40-something? I guess he has something that makes all generations of Colemans swoon.)
But mostly, “Freakier Friday” isn’t so freaky, let alone freakier. Everyone acts age appropriate and – after the fun waking-up-switched sequence – adjusts immediately. The adults immediately remake their clothes into teen fashions; the teens immediately find mature-looking clothes. The teen (in appearance) storyline is lame; Anna and Tess are stuck in detention and don’t do much about it. And the adult (in appearance) storyline is a rerun: teens’ initial attempts at stopping parents’ weddings, then realization that the marriage is a great thing.
If the 2025 version of Disney is freakier than the corporation was in 1976 or 2003, it’s not by much. But it can still make a slick, family friendly product.