The Five-Star Weekend: A Summer Limited Series on Peacock

“The Five-Star Weekend” is an eight-episode limited series that premiered on Peacock in July 2026. The story follows food-influencer Hollis Shaw (Jennifer Garner), newly widowed after her husband Matthew’s fatal car accident, as she invites four long-time friends to her Nantucket home for a weekend intended to ease her grief. The gathering brings together childhood friend Tatum McKenzie (Chloë Sevigny), college best-friend Dru-Ann Jones (Regina Hall), city-based mom Brooke Kirtley (D’Arcy Carden), and online follower Gigi Ling (Gemma Chan), alongside Hollis’s daughter Caroline (Harlow Jane) and former flame Jack Finnigan (Timothy Olyphant).

The Five Star Weekend Review: Jennifer Garner’s “Big Little Lies Lite” Beach Drama Is Forgettable Escapist Fun

The series adapts Elin Hilderbrand’s 2023 novel of the same name. Creator Bekah Brunstetter, a playwright and veteran of “This Is Us,” serves as showrunner. The adaptation follows a recent trend of translating Hilderbrand’s Nantucket-set beach reads for television, most notably the 2024 Netflix series “The Perfect Couple.” Critics have noted the series’ aesthetic similarity to the “Big Little Lives” formula of affluent women in coastal settings.

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• Jennifer Garner – Hollis Shaw, food influencer and executive producer.

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• D’Arcy Carden – Brooke Kirtley, a mother navigating a troubled marriage.

Hollywood Reporter

• Gemma Chan – Gigi Ling, an airline pilot who befriended Hollis online.

The Wrap

• Regina Hall – Dru-Ann Jones, a high-powered sports-agent and college friend.

The Wrap

• Chloë Sevigny – Tatum McKenzie, a local dry-cleaner confronting a health scare.

The Wrap

• Harlow Jane – Caroline Shaw, Hollis’s college-age daughter.

The Wrap

• Timothy Olyphant – Jack Finnigan, Hollis’s high-school ex-boyfriend.

The Five Star Weekend Review: Jennifer Garner’s “Big Little Lies Lite” Beach Drama Is Forgettable Escapist Fun

• Judy Greer – Electra, a social-climber who seeks to disrupt the weekend.

Hollywood Reporter

• Episodes: 8 (limited series).

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• Platform: Peacock (U.S. streaming).

The Wrap

• Reported premiere dates: July 9, 2026 (multiple sources) and July 16, 2026 (Hollywood Reporter).

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• Source material: 2023 novel by Elin Hilderbrand.

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• Production design emphasizes “quiet luxury” with Nantucket-style interiors and extensive food-preparation sequences.

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Garner, speaking to *Emmys* magazine, emphasized that midlife loss creates a space where “hurt and grief” can surface within a “privacy and the messiness of just sitting in each other’s stew of sisterhood.” Brunstetter’s work on the adaptation has been described by reviewers as “doing wonders with the material she was given,” highlighting her effort to balance humor and pathos within the limited-run format.

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The Hollywood Reporter characterizes the series as “pretty and polished, to a fault,” noting a lack of narrative complexity. TheWrap points to “crazy contrivances and coincidences” and a “potential local-boy love interest” that strains credibility. ScreenRant observes “low stakes and light on juicy secrets,” likening the show to a “Big Little Lives” episode “left out in the sun too long.” SheKnows calls the series a “soapy addition” but acknowledges the presence of “secrets and family drama.” Several reviewers remark that the ensemble’s material feels “undercooked,” limiting award-season prospects.

The Five Star Weekend Review: Jennifer Garner’s “Big Little Lies Lite” Beach Drama Is Forgettable Escapist Fun

Sources disagree on the series’ launch schedule: The Hollywood Reporter lists a Thursday, July 16 airdate, implying a weekly rollout, whereas TheWrap, ScreenRant, and SheKnows state that all eight episodes released simultaneously on July 9. No viewership data or renewal information is provided.

The Wrap

• “By the time you’re in the middle of your life, some s—t has gone down,” she told *Emmys* magazine. “So, they all show up with hurt and grief. And in the privacy and the messiness of just sitting in each other’s stew of sisterhood, there’s room for all of it to come out and be explored.” — Jennifer Garner, Actress, Executive Producer

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• “My favorite performance of the bunch, though, was Sevigny’s salty, earthy, frequently funny turn as the friend most insistent on cutting through all the bullshit.” — Hollywood Reporter reviewer

Hollywood Reporter

• “The Five-Star Weekend The Bottom Line Pretty and polished, to a fault.” — Hollywood Reporter tagline

Hollywood Reporter

• “Want to come over and talk shit about our moms?” — Text message between Caroline and Audrey (characters)

Hollywood Reporter

• “By comparison, The Five Star Weekend is low on stakes and light on juicy secrets, ultimately feeling like Big Little Lies if it had been left out in the sun too long.” — ScreenRant reviewer

The Five Star Weekend Review: Jennifer Garner’s “Big Little Lies Lite” Beach Drama Is Forgettable Escapist Fun

• “Just like daytime, the show balances the high-stakes theatrics with a world viewers love to get lost in.” — SheKnows commentary

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All eight episodes are currently available on Peacock, allowing viewers to binge the series in its entirety. No announcements regarding a second season or additional adaptations have been made, leaving future developments contingent on audience response and network decisions.

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