Meet the ‘Father of the Bride’ Remake’s Secret Feminist Weapon

Andy Garcia wasn’t acting in Father of the Bride. He didn’t have to. By nature, he’s a “girl dad.”

At least, this is what Adria Arjona, who plays his daughter in the HBO Max remake, tells me about the Oscar-nominated actor. Even after filming wrapped, Garcia has continued to play the role of Arjona’s dad, nagging her (compassionately!) at every event they attend while promoting the new movie.

“Yesterday, he got upset at me because I didn’t finish my salad,” Arjona says through laughter. “I was like, ‘Andy, I’m wearing a really tight belt to the premiere. I’m going to throw up if I keep eating.’ He’s like, ‘You know what, Adria? You’re not eating enough. And you know what? You’re traveling too much.’”

It’s method acting, but in the kindest way—and Arjona adores how much Garcia cares for her. After all, who wouldn’t want to have Andy Garcia as a second father?

“Instantly, he started treating me like his daughter,” Arjona recalls of their first days working on the rom-com together. “He’s really taking care of me. And I love that! It’s so endearing.”

This sweet father-daughter relationship budding between Arjona and Garcia gracefully translates into Father of the Bride. The pair’s relationship is the heartwarming core of what makes this remake so delightful. Add in a winning supporting cast (Gloria Estefan as the matriarch, Isabela Merced as little sis) and this 2022 adaptation has delights to compare with both the 1991 Steve Martin film and the 1950 Spencer Tracy/Elizabeth Taylor original that was nominated for three Oscars.

Father of the Bride (2022) is a rom-com triumph. Stop what you’re doing—after you read this, of course—and watch it. Balancing kookiness with touching conversations surrounding generational and cultural gaps, director Gary Alazraki crafts a new story that, dare I say it, may actually improve on the other films. (Runs and hides.)

Here, for instance, we get to really know the bride who is dragging her father through all the stressful wedding planning. Arjona plays Sofia, a no-nonsense SheEO who barely manages to squeeze in time for her boisterous Cuban American family living in Florida. When she proposes—record scratch—to the son of a Mexican billionaire (Diego Boneta), announces plans to move to Mexico and work for a non-profit, and declares the wedding is just one month away, her father Billy (Garcia) scrambles.

But Arjona feels no need to apologize for her character’s actions. In fact, she encourages other young women to feel empowered by her role.

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“Women are able and can do literally whatever they want,” she says. “Whether they want to wait for a man to ask for their hand in marriage—that’s amazing, wait and have that moment—but if you also want to take it into your own hands, you can do that, too. It doesn’t really matter.”

Father of the Bride follows the same threads as the Steve Martin version, but adds in complex new layers of comedy. Whereas we only see Steve Martin hopping into a pool at the new in-laws house in the 1991 film, we dive head first into the great ocean of the Castillo family’s quirks in the 2022 adaptation.

Families clash. There are similarities (arguments, but so much love) and differences (generational divides, divorce, yachts), but, hey! There’s a damn wedding to plan.

“It’s the first time ever that I’ve seen two Latin American families, or two cultures, coming together,” Arjona says. “We’re really going to see the differences of: What does it mean to be Mexican, what does it mean to be Cuban American? What does that look like? People constantly tell me—I’m Puerto Rican—and they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, you’re from Mexico.’ That’s not the same thing. Just because we’re Latin American doesn’t make us all one thing.”

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Oh, and you thought Martin Short couldn’t be replaced as the flustered wedding planner Franck Eggelhoffer? Guess again. Saturday Night Live’s Chloe Fineman takes the reins of this wedding, “she-bossing” (Andy Garcia’s version of girlbossing) the soirée into the ground. It’s a sublime performance that I can’t put into words, but Arjona agrees: Fineman is a revelation.

While watching this new addition, I found myself hunting for a lingering connection that ties it to the other two Father of the Bride films. Apart from the very basic premise of a father and a daughter colliding on her wedding day, could it be the house at which the wedding is held? The brutal planning, all spearheaded by the world’s biggest lunatic? But Arjona says their differences actually bring them together.

“The music, the style, the decoration, the wardrobe, the way they talk—everything is so different that, when people watch this movie, I wouldn’t try to find a throughline. On the contrary, I would say they’re such generational films,” Arjona argues. “I’m so curious to see what Father of the Bride is going to be in 20 years. What are the traditions? What are the norms?”

Speaking of fashion, the wedding dress has evolved into something to fit 2022. Instead of spending thousands of dollars on a dress (another hilarious bit with Fineman), Sofia’s designer sister Cora (Merced) is tasked with drafting an original look for the bride. Arjona, who already has a deep connection with Merced thanks to their work together on Netflix’s Sweet Girl, wanted her co-star to actually have a say in the design process.

“When I saw it, I was so excited, and I was blown away by the simplicity and the beauty of the dress,” Arjona teases of the dress. “I was really expecting a huge, va-va-voom gown. I’m not a huge fan of that. When I saw that it was so simple and elegant and timeless, I got really excited.”

Coincidentally, Arjona plays another young bride in her ongoing HBO series Irma Vep, too. She didn’t realize the connection beforehand (“Maybe I look like a bride? We should probably get some casting directors on the phone.”), though she’s ready to be typecast and throw on more wedding dresses in any roles that may come.

But this movie was specifically touching to her. Arjona was married in 2019, and still has stress nightmares about all the little planning that goes on. She can relate to Sofia’s hectic month of non-stop phone calls. Moreover, the dad aspect was in her wheelhouse as well.

“I’m also incredibly close to my father,” Arjona says. “Doing a story about a father dynamic, to me, was really moving and really special.”

Alas, her real-life dad has some new competition. The hilarious looks of disapproval, banter about mariachi bands, and comfort provided by Garcia in Father of the Bride prove that the pair are truly two peas in a pod—on and off screen.

“I have, and will forever have, my Hollywood dad,” insists Arjona. “I don’t care who else plays my dad—Andy Garcia came first.”

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