Suppose Andy Garcia and Gloria Estefan were your boisterous, lovingly overbearing in-laws. Such is the basis of HBO’s Father of the Bride remake, which reimagines the classic rom-com in the context of a Cuban American household in Miami.
In the first trailer, unveiled on Monday, Garcia (aka Fernando from Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, which is obviously his most important performance to date) plays Billy, a protective dad who is a little too set in his traditional ways. “Fathers play a big role in their daughter’s life,” he narrates. “It’s a special bond that only they share, and even when she’s all grown up, she’s still daddy’s little girl.”
But Billy’s somewhat cringey patriarchal worldview—in which his 20-something lawyer daughter (Adria Arjona) will always be his “little girl”—is left shattered when she tells him she’s engaged to be married. Not only that, but Arjona’s Sophie was the one who proposed to her fiancé Adan (Diego Boneta), a detail that really blows Billy’s sexist little mind. “Can you do that?” he asks in disbelief. “Does anyone do that?” The upcoming film appears to follow a similar plot to that of Nancy Meyers’ beloved 1991 take on the story starring Steve Martin, which was itself a remake of the 1950 film of the same name.
The ever-iconic Gloria Estefan plays Sophie’s mother, Ingrid. Billy and Ingrid are on the brink of divorce, but they decide to keep their marital issues a secret and play the part of a perfect family until after Sophie’s wedding. In the preview, the “Conga” singer flexes some formidable comedic chops, agreeing that she and her husband can dance together “if necessary,” but that kissing is absolutely off the table.
“I was just looking forward to spending the time with her and bringing our own personal relationship to the forefront,” Garcia told People of working with his longtime friend, Estefan. “It was very easy to have chemistry with her and we felt very comfortable with one another.”
Father of the Bride also stars Isabela Merced and Pedro Damián. Saturday Night Live’s Chloe Fineman plays the obnoxious wedding planner, an updated version of Martin Short’s over-the-top character from the ‘90s films.
From director Gaz Alazrak and screenwriter Matt Lopez, Father of the Bride premieres on HBO Max on June 16.
