Freakier Friday shouldn’t work. It really shouldn’t. It’s a sequel to a 2003 remake of a 1976 remake of a 1972 novel — the kind of franchise necromancy that usually belongs in a Disney+ content vault. Yet here it is, in cinemas, 22 years later, with Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis switching bodies again. And somehow, against all expectations and logic, it doesn’t just work. It kind of thrives.
The plot is straightforward in that familiar mouse-house way. Anna (Lohan), now a full-grown adult with a child of her own and a new stepdaughter-to-be, is struggling to navigate the awkward choreography of a blended family. Her mother Tess (Curtis), still in full control-freak mode, is more grandma than glam now, but she hasn’t lost the bite. One mystical mishap later, and history repeats itself — this time with more generations and slightly better wardrobe choices.
The original Freaky Friday reboot was a cultural moment. Not only did it give us peak early-2000s Lohan, it turned Jamie Lee Curtis into a new kind of comic queen for a generation of girls who were just discovering Hot Topic and therapy. So yes, Disney mining that nostalgia was always on the cards. But what is shocking is how genuinely entertaining the result is. It’s tempting to call this film a nostalgia cash grab. After all, Disney has handed us many visually polished reboots that feel empty inside, like in Fantastic Four: First Steps . But Freakier Friday isn’t just pretty — it’s got emotional teeth.
Lohan isn’t just back — she’s back with intention. There is a self-awareness to her performance that makes the film feel personal. She’s funny, grounded, and emotionally available. Her Anna is now a mum navigating two teenagers and a pile of unprocessed family baggage. There’s an unexpected depth to her performance — not Oscar-level depth, but enough to make you remember that she was once that girl in Hollywood for a reason.
Curtis, on the other hand, is more hit-and-miss. When she plays uptight Tess, she’s in full command. But when the film requires her to channel a teenager again, it veers a little too close to parody. There are moments that feel like they belong in a skit show, not a feature film. She’s always competent, but the spark she had in the 2003 version is a little dimmer this time around.
The supporting cast is stacked with familiar faces. Julia Butters and Sophia Hammons bring energy to their roles as Anna’s daughter and stepdaughter-to-be. Maitreyi Ramakrishnan pops in just long enough to remind you she’s one of the most watchable Gen Z actors working today. Manny Jacinto does what he can with a very underwritten love interest role. But the film’s weakest link by far is Vanessa Bayer as the psychic. Every line she delivers feels like a slightly off-key variation of something she’s done before. It’s not quirky. It’s stale.
Still, director Nisha Ganatra somehow manages to thread a needle between chaotic humour, genuine emotion, and Disney-brand family fluff. There’s a scene involving a family therapy session that goes completely off the rails in the best way. The movie isn’t just recycling old beats. It’s trying to say something new — not in a deep, philosophical way, but in a sincere, this-is-how-people-parent-now way.
It’s far from perfect. The pacing drags in the second act. Some of the jokes overstay their welcome. And the inevitable “we’ve learned something today” speech still feels like it came from a Disney Channel script generator. But by the time the credits roll, the film has earned its warm fuzzies.
More importantly, it’s earned Lohan her moment. She’s still magnetic, still funny, and still capable of anchoring a film when the material gives her something to do. Freakier Friday doesn’t just mark her return. It makes the case that she never should have left in the first place.
