The Jamie Lynn Spears-led Paramount+ sequel film entertains with self-driving cars, big twists and lots of awkward comedy
Note: This story contains spoilers from “Zoey 102.”
“Zoey 102” is finally here, bringing with it plenty of nostalgia and cringeworthy comedy for fans new and old to enjoy.
The Paramount+ movie, a long-gestating sequel of the Nickelodeon hit series “Zoey 101,” features the return of star Jamie Lynn Spears and most of the original cast members for a follow-up adventure along the Pacific Coast Highway. Set more than a decade since the events of the final season, “Zoey 102” follows the title character (Spears) as she juggles her busy career as a producer on a “Love Island”-style reality show and maid of honor duties for her best friends Quinn (Erin Sanders) and Logan’s (Matthew Underwood) wedding.
Directed by Nancy Hower and written by Monica Sherer and Madeline Whitby, the film takes a campy approach to catching up with the crew that first met attending Malibu’s Pacific Coast Academy. The wedding reunites Zoey with most of the gang, including friends Michael (Christopher Massey), Stacey (Abby Wilde), Mark (Mark Del Figgalo) and her former flame Chase (Sean Flynn).
The movie showers devoted fans with callbacks to the original series, but also introduces plenty of new characters through Zoey’s job as a talent producer on “Love Fully Charged.” With Zoey still harboring feelings for Chase, managing the testy reality star Jordan B (Zach Zagoria) and attempting to keep bride Quinn and her boss Kelly (Thomas Lennon) happy, the wedding weekend makes for a perfect storm of awkward and hilarious shenanigans.
Read on for a breakdown of the cringiest moments from “Zoey 102.” Warning, major spoilers ahead.
The film kicked off with Zoey having a romantic dinner with a man who bore a striking resemblance to a young Chase. Zoey looked on seemingly confused while he spoke passionately about valuing their relationship. He went down on one knee and proposed to her in the crowded restaurant, but Zoey couldn’t accept, revealing that the pair had only been on two dates. While attempting to make a brisk exit after rejecting the proposal, Zoey ran into a group of waiters bringing in a celebration cake for another table and left a mess in her wake.
Zoey had worked her way up the production ranks on the hit network reality competition series “Love Fully Charged.” Early on, viewers learned that the on-screen personality Jordan B depended on Zoey to know what to say in his on-camera dates. She also proved her work prowess during a team meeting, despite her boss Kelly giving credit for one of her suggestions to one of her male colleagues. Near the end of the meeting, Kelly announced that only a limited number of producers would be asked to work during the show’s live finale — and he picked almost all of the other male producers instead of her.
Zoey was disappointed after being overlooked at work, until Quin called to give her the news that Logan had proposed. They couple planned to wed on the same day as the live finale taping, and Quinn asked Zoey to be the maid of honor. The friends discussed how the wedding would be a chance for them to finally get together after so much time, which Zoey seemed excited about — despite some unresolved issues with the dissolution of her relationship with Chase after graduation.
Things became complicated after Kelly called Zoey and told her that fan-favorite Jordan B would surely make it to the “Love Fully Charged” finale, which meant she would have to be on set to help him through filming.
