| Are We There Yet? | |
| Distributor: | Sony Pictures Entertainment |
| Released: | 2005-2013 |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $48,000,000 (2 films) |
| Gross: | $156,502,539 (2 films) |
The Are We There Yet? franchise consists of American family-comedies,[1] including two theatrical films and a television series spin-off. The plot centers around a combined family, and the experiences that they encounter due to the blended nature of their familial unit. Each installment details the comedic circumstances that arise, and their determination to overcome their differences to build a stronger connection.
The franchise has been met with overall negative reception from critics, while it has financially turned a profit at the box office. The first film was met with negative reception, though it turned a profit at the box office. The 2007 sequel was poorly received critically, while also earning less than half monetarily than its predecessor. The television series spin-off was additionally received with mixed reception from critics and viewers alike.
| Film | U.S. release date | Director | Screenwriters | Story by | Producers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Are We There Yet? | Brian Levant | Steven Gary Banks & Claudia Grazioso and J. David Stem & David N. Weiss | Steven Gary Banks & Claudia Grazioso | Ice Cube, Matt Alvarez and Dan Kolsrud | |
| Are We Done Yet? | Steve Carr | Hank Nelken | Ice Cube, Matt Alvarez, Ted Hartley and Todd Garner | ||
See main article: Are We There Yet? (film).
Nick Parsons, an eligible bachelor meets the woman of his dreams named Suzanne Kingston. Initially infatuated with her, he's disappointed to discover that she has two children with her ex-husband. Lindsey and Kevin, who wish their parents would get back together seek for every opportunity to end Suzanne's relationships. As Nick and Suzanne begin to build a real friendship, she is pleased to find that he regularly offers to assist her with her needs.
After taking her to the airport and her departure for an upcoming business trip in Vancouver, Suzanne calls him to ask if he can also bring her children so that they can take a flight and meet her in Canada. When the three are kicked out of the airport, Nick is determined to bring Suzanne's children to her and decides to do so via road trip. Though they hope to rekindle the love between their parents, the children are heartbroken to discover that their father has been making excuses to avoid spending time with them, and that he has started a new family of his own. Nick realizes that through the series of comedic misadventures along the way he has grown to care for the children, and feels a responsibility to expresses his appreciation for them. In so doing, Suzanne sees his parenting potential and the couple begin a serious relationship together.[2] [3] [4]
See main article: Are We Done Yet?.
A couple of years later, Nick and Suzanne are married and looking for every opportunity to build a stronger relationship with combined family. Lindsey and Kevin are entering the early experiences of adolescence, just as Suzanne announces to everyone that she is pregnant with twins. Realizing that they will need more living space, the family moves to the country and Nick purchases a home from a local real estate agent named Chuck.
Nick quickly regrets their decision, as the discover a mold infestation among a growing list of issues with the house. Despite this, Chuck and his crew offer to complete the repairs that are required to make their home more livable. Though Lindsey initially had distaste for the family's decision to move, she and a crewsman named Danny Pulu become romantically involved. As Nick tries to finalize a contract with Earvin "Magic" Johnson at work, his boss calls him to state that the company may move on from this assignment. On top of this, the contractors notify the family that the house will need a new foundation along with all of the repairs. Discouraged by work and familial responsibilities, the family must learn to depend on each other while building a stronger foundations to their love and prepare for the birth of the twins in the meantime.[5] [6] [7]
See main article: Are We There Yet? (TV series).
In July 2009, it was announced that a spin-off television series was in development. Ali LeRoi was announced to serve as the show's creator, writer, showrunner and executive producer. Initially planned as a made-for-TV adaptation, it was later described as a continuation of the film series,[8] albeit with a new cast starring Terry Crews, Essence Atkins, Teala Dunn, and Coy Stewart in the primary roles of Nick, Suzanne, Lindsey, and Kevin, respectively; while O'Shea "Ice Cube" Jackson Sr. will serve as an additional executive producer and feature in a recurring role as Suzanne's protective paramilitary brother.[9] [10] The plot centers around the adventures of the combined Kingston-Persons family, six months after the marriage of Nick and Suzanne, and their efforts in building meaningful relationships between them and her children; taking place chronologically between the two movies.[11]
The series was a joint-venture production between Revolution Studios, Debmar-Mercury, and Cube Vision and aired on TBS for 3 seasons, and a total of 100 episodes. The show was met with mixed reception overall, with critics calling the series inferior to Everybody Hates Chris; the previous collaboration between LeRoi and Crews.[12]
| Character | Films | Television | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Are We There Yet? | Are We Done Yet? | Are We There Yet? | |
| Nick Persons | Ice Cube | Terry Crews | |
| Suzanne Kingston-Persons | Nia Long | Essence Atkins | |
| Lindsey Kingston-Persons | Aleisha Allen | Teala Dunn | |
| Kevin Kingston-Persons | Philip Daniel Bolden | Coy Stewart | |
| Kingston-Persons Twins | Colin Strange & Gavin Strange | ||
| Terrance | Ice Cube | ||
| Martin "Marty" | Jay Mohr | Christian Finnegan | |
| Frank Kingston | Sean Millington | Charlie Murphy | |
| Chuck Mitchell Jr. | John C. McGinley | ||
| Danny Pulu | Tahj Mowry | ||
| Billy Pulu | Dan Joffre | ||
| Georgie Pulu | Pedro Miguel Arce | ||
| Marilyn Persons | Telma Hopkins | ||
| Film | Crew/Detail | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composer | Cinematographer | Editor(s) | Production companies | Distributing companies | Running time | ||
| Are We There Yet? | David Newman | Thomas E. Ackerman | Lawrence Jordan | Sony Pictures, Columbia Pictures, Revolution Studios, Cube Vision Inc. | Sony Pictures Releasing | 1 hr 34 mins | |
| Are We Done Yet? | Teddy Castellucci | Jack N. Green | Craig P. Herring | Sony Pictures, Columbia Pictures, Revolution Studios, Cube Vision Inc., RKO Radio Pictures, Revolution Dream Productions | 1 hr 32 mins | ||
| Are We There Yet? | Stanley A. Smith | Bill Berner | Matt Davis, Max Heller, Jennifer Lilly, Paul Viskup, Myron Tookes, Dan Landi, Nick Mougis, and Gary Levy | Revolution Studios, Cube Vision Inc., 5914 Productions | Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) | 36 hrs 40 mins | |
| Film | Box office gross | Box office ranking | Budget | Worldwide net total income | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | All-time North America | All-time worldwide | |||||
| Are We There Yet? | $82,674,398 | $15,440,073 | $98,114,471 |
|
| $20,000,000 $32,000,000 | $78,114,471 | [13] [14] | |
| Are We Done Yet? | $49,662,533 | $8,725,535 | $58,388,068 |
|
| $28,000,000 | $30,388,068 | [15] [16] | |
| Totals | $132,336,931 | $24,165,608 | $156,502,539 | x̄ #1,444 | x̄ 4,486 | $48,000,000 | $108,502,539 | ||
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Are We There Yet? | 11% (115 reviews)[17] | 27/100 (28 reviews)[18] | B+[19] | |
| Are We Done Yet? | 7% (91 reviews)[20] | 36/100 (21 reviews)[21] | B | |
| Are We There Yet? (The Series) | 40% (5 reviews)[22] | 47/100 (10 reviews)[23] |