Joshua Jackson and Katie Holmes, who captured hearts as Pacey and Joey on Dawson’s Creek, will share the screen again in Happy Hours, a new romantic drama written, directed by, and starring Holmes. The project arrives three decades after the WB series first paired the actors and gives fans a fresh chance to watch their easy rapport play out in a contemporary love story.
The Reunion
Jackson signed on to Happy Hours last summer after Holmes sent him the script. The two stayed in touch after Dawson’s Creek ended in 2003, but this marks their first professional collaboration since the finale. They spent a single season dating off-screen during the show’s 1998 debut, and both have spoken about the trust that history creates on set. “We already know each other’s rhythms,” Jackson told reporters at the film’s recent wrap party. “That shorthand makes everything easier.”
Holmes announced the movie on Instagram with a grainy Polaroid of the duo reviewing lines between takes. She described the story as “a look at what happens when the one who got away walks back in,” while Jackson has hinted that the finished film may launch a trilogy should audiences respond. Production wrapped in late August on location in New York and coastal Maine.
The Story Behind Happy Hours
The plot follows former high-school sweethearts who reunite in their forties after careers, marriages, and separate lives pulled them apart. Jackson plays a craft-beer brewer who never left their small seaside town; Holmes portrays a Manhattan art curator returning home to settle her late mother’s estate. Over the course of a long weekend, the two navigate lingering chemistry, old wounds, and the possibility of starting over.
Holmes wrote the first draft during the 2021 lockdown and financed the project through her production company, quietly assembling a cast that includes Zosia Mamet and Jim Gaffigan in supporting roles. Cinematographer Igor Jadue-Lillo shot on 35 mm to give the picture a warm, nostalgic glow that echoes New England autumns and late-night bar conversations.
A Long-Awaited Return to the Screen
When Dawson’s Creek premiered, it pulled roughly 6.8 million viewers a week and turned its young cast into household names. Streaming numbers on Netflix and Hulu have introduced the series to a new generation, keeping demand for a reunion steady. Holmes has resisted reviving the characters outright, preferring instead to “explore similar questions of timing and love with people who have lived a little more life.”
Amazon Prime Video has secured domestic distribution rights, eyeing a late-fall release and festival circuit debut. Early test screenings scored highly with women over 35, the same demographic that once devoured the Creek kids’ weekly dramas.
The Significance of Reunions in Hollywood
Hollywood’s appetite for familiar faces keeps growing. Data from the Motion Picture Association show that sequels, reboots, or reunion projects accounted for eight of the top twenty domestic releases last year. Yet the success rate depends on chemistry, not just name recognition. Industry analyst Paul Dergarabedian notes, “Audiences can sense when actors genuinely enjoy working together again—that authenticity translates into ticket sales.”
For Holmes and Jackson, the reunion offers creative control and a built-in fan base without the pressure of reprising trademark roles. If Happy Hours performs, the planned follow-ups would follow the same characters across consecutive holiday weekends, tracking the couple’s evolving relationship against the backdrop of a changing coastal town.
The Evolution of Joshua Jackson and Katie Holmes’ Careers
Since Capeside, Jackson earned Emmy nominations for The Affair and Dr. Death, while balancing stage work in New York and London. Holmes shifted behind the camera, directing 2016’s All We Had and producing the Tribeca entry Alone Together. Both actors say the new project lets them fold those experiences into a story about second chances.
| Actor | Recent Highlights |
|---|---|
| Joshua Jackson | Dr. Death (Peacock), Fatal Attraction (Paramount+), Off-Broadway revival of Children of a Lesser God |
| Katie Holmes | Rare Objects (writer-director), The Secret: Dare to Dream, fashion line Holmes & Yang |
The Future of Happy Hours
Post-production is nearly complete, with a teaser trailer expected next month. Music supervisor Linda Cohen has curated a soundtrack heavy on late-’90s alternative tracks that should further stoke nostalgia without tipping into gimmickry. Amazon will release the film simultaneously in select theaters and on its streaming platform, reflecting the hybrid model that mid-budget adult dramas now rely on.
If viewership metrics hit the benchmarks Jackson and Holmes have hinted at, scripts for parts two and three—tentatively titled Golden Hour and Blue Hour—are already outlined. For now, the focus remains on delivering a single, self-contained love story that proves some on-screen partnerships only improve with age.