NOT Madea's Destination Wedding, But It Should Have Been

 

Madea’s Destination Wedding ★½

Review by Shaquanna Stevens

I really didn’t want to be here again, talking about another Tyler Perry movie in a negative light. But here we are. Let’s talk about Madea’s Destination Wedding, the latest Netflix collaboration written, directed by, produced by, and starring Tyler Perry. I believe this is the 29th installment in the Madea Cinematic Universe—give or take a few wigs and stage plays.

The plot (loosely) follows Brian, Madea’s nephew, as he’s guilted into paying for his daughter Tiffany’s destination wedding in the Bahamas. Tiffany’s mother—his ex-wife, who’s suddenly rich and slightly evil—pressures him into footing the bill, and next thing you know, the whole crew (Madea, Bam, Joe, Brown, and Cora) is on a plane, spending Brian’s money, and dragging chaos with them like carry-ons.

Sounds like a good setup for a comedy, right? It could’ve been. But the film makes a critical error: it’s not about Madea.

Despite the title, the protagonist of this movie is Brian. And listen—nobody goes to a Madea movie for Brian. Brian is a narrative utility. He’s the buttoned-up contrast to all the foolishness. He’s the legal hookup when someone needs to beat a charge. He’s the guy with money when other characters need help. But a leading man? Not so much.

And yet Madea’s Destination Wedding turns into Brian’s Moral Journey, complete with dramatic speeches, family strife, and a conflict with a disrespectful fiancé named Xavier (or “Z”)—a young man who shows up out of nowhere, announces he’s marrying Brian’s daughter in two weeks, and expects Brian to pay for it. Oh, and Z is rude, disrespectful, and gives big “this man is not ready for marriage” energy. But somehow, Brian is the one who needs to learn a lesson? I don’t think so.

The film’s central problem is that it promises Madea, and instead delivers lukewarm family melodrama. We barely see Madea on screen, and when she is there, she’s not the driving force. The movie’s funnier moments—like Brown going down a hotel waterslide, Madea panicking about getting arrested at the passport office, or Joe gambling away money while Bam raids the gift shop—are standalone skits, not connected to any real story.

And that’s what it feels like: disconnected vignettes. Comedy sketches loosely stitched together with a storyline nobody asked for.

Let’s talk about the Bahamas. Or rather, the lack of them. The movie never actually uses its setting. Yes, we’re told they’re in the Bahamas, but we never see them on the beach. Never see them on a boat. Never see them engaging with the island. The whole thing could’ve been filmed in a Marriott in Atlanta (and frankly, I think most of it was). Why set it in the Bahamas if you’re never going to use the Bahamas?

The better version of this movie writes itself. Madea’s Destination Wedding should’ve starred Madea. Give me a plot where some charming online prince convinces her to get married in the Bahamas. She drags her family with her, only to find out he’s a scammer. Or maybe she wakes up married to Brown in a surprise twist ending, Best Man-style. Imagine the chaos of Madea realizing she married her worst enemy—and Cora’s daddy. That’s comedy. That’s heart. That’s a movie.

But what we get instead is more like filler. And don’t get me wrong—some of it is funny. The gas station scene? Ridiculous, but hilarious. Brown’s dramatic hotel entrance? Classic. But they’re not part of anything bigger. And as the film moves toward its rushed ending, you start to wonder: why are we even here?

We don’t see the wedding. We don’t see any real resolution. There’s a throwaway line like, “Let’s skip to the kissing part,” and suddenly they’re married. Then the final joke is a receipt tally of how much Madea and crew spent on Brian’s dime. And that’s it.

Look, this isn’t about asking Tyler Perry to be the next Ryan Coogler or Ava DuVernay or Gina Prince-Bythewood or even Malcolm D. Lee. It’s not about him turning into someone else. It’s about what he already has—these iconic, hilarious, beloved characters—and asking why he won’t trust them enough to carry the story.

Instead of evolving, Perry keeps falling back on these half-baked plots, moralizing tones, and stage play leftovers. And the real shame is that people want him to succeed. We’ve been rooting for him. Some of us were there from the stage play on VHS days. We defended him when the mainstream didn’t. But at a certain point, the lack of growth becomes impossible to ignore.

And it’s not just about the storytelling. It’s the weird tonal choices. Like blasting explicit rap lyrics in a scene that otherwise could’ve been PG. You’ve got actors like Cassi Davis and Tamela Mann who have been pretty clear about what kind of content they do—and then you throw in “pop that P-word” as a punchline? It’s not just out of place—it shrinks your audience. That scene didn’t need to go that far. The joke could’ve been clean and still landed.

And that’s the throughline here: Perry has funny characters. He has loyal fans. But he doesn’t trust either enough to let the characters grow or let the fans expect more.

What we’re left with is a film that claims to be about Madea, barely uses her, centers a character no one asked for, sets itself in a location it doesn’t explore, and then moralizes a story that doesn’t deserve it. Madea’s Destination Wedding is a comedy that forgot to be funny, a story that forgot who its star was, and a missed opportunity to do something fresh with one of the most recognizable characters in Black pop culture.

I’m not mad at Tyler Perry for bringing Madea back. I’m just asking him—next time, let her lead the movie she’s supposed to be in. Give her the story. Give her the stage.

Because if you’re going to put Madea in the title, then let Madea have the wedding.

Shaquanna Stevens is a film critic and cultural commentator focusing on Black cinema, community narratives, and stories that explore identity and legacy. Follow her at Her Reel Review