The Wedding Planner (2001)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A high-powered wedding planner finds herself falling for the very man she is hired to marry off to her client.
The story
Ambitious San Francisco wedding planner Mary Fiore is hired to coordinate the high-society wedding of heiress Fran Donolly and her fiancé, Eddie. While navigating the complex demands of the event, Mary's life takes an unexpected turn when she is rescued from a near-fatal accident by a man named Steve Edison. As she begins to develop feelings for her rescuer, she discovers a shocking complication: Steve is actually the man Fran is set to marry. Caught between her professional ambitions, her personal feelings, and her loyalty to her client, Mary must navigate a web of romantic complications and family pressures.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Mary Fiore, an ambitious wedding planner in San Francisco, is pressured by her father, Salvatore, to marry a childhood acquaintance named Massimo. Mary declines, focusing instead on her career goals. She is hired to plan the wedding of heiress Fran Donolly to her boyfriend, Eddie. After being saved from a traffic accident by Steve Edison, Mary develops a romantic connection with him, only to realize that Steve is actually Eddie. Mary struggles with her feelings, especially as her father continues to push the Massimo engagement. During the planning process, Mary and Steve become friends, and Mary even discovers that her former fiancé, Keith, was cheating on her. Despite her feelings for Steve, Mary initially convinces Fran to proceed with the wedding. However, after a series of emotional breakthroughs and a heartfelt proposal from Massimo, Mary realizes she doesn't want to marry him. At the town hall, her father stops the ceremony, and Mary leaves Massimo. Steve eventually confesses his love to Mary, and the two find their way to each other, ending the film with a kiss.
- First release year
- 2001
- Runtime (minutes)
- 103
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Adam Shankman
- Writers
- Pamela Falk · writer; Michael Ellis · writer
- Cast and characters
- Jennifer Lopez · Mary Fiore; Matthew McConaughey · Steve Edison; Bridgette Wilson-Sampras · Fran Donolly; Justin Chambers · Eddie; Alex Rocco · Salvatore
- Genres
- romantic comedy
- Themes
- love vs. career; arranged marriage; loyalty
- Tone and mood
- romantic; heavy-handed; contrived
- Premise and plot tags
- wedding; romance; career vs. love
- Reception
- The film received generally negative reviews from critics, described as heavy-handed and unoriginal, though it was a box office success.
- Awards and nominations
- Worst Actress · Golden Raspberry Awards · nominated
- Production trivia
- The original actors cast as Mary and Steve were Jennifer Love Hewitt and Brendan Fraser.; Jennifer Lopez became the first entertainer to achieve a number-one album and film simultaneously in the same week.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…