Blended

Blended follows two single parents who form an unlikely dating pair after a failed attempt to connect. Lauren, a recently divorced mom, and Jim, a widowed dad, are steered by well-meaning friends into one blind date that ends in embarrassment. They both separately buy a family vacation package to a South African resort, hoping to impress their kids with a fresh start. When they arrive, they discover they are booked into the same resort and find their children already assigned to a shared suite. Forced to spend a vacation side by side, the two families stumble through a series of misadventures and awkward trials that test patience, teamwork, and love. The laughter truly comes from missteps, misunderstandings, and teamwork.

Directed by Frank Coraci, Blended comes from writers Clare Sera and Ivan Menchell. The film reunites Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore for a sunlit family comedy about romance and chaotic vacation life, blending humor with heart and messy family dynamics.

Financially, Blended carried a 40 million budget and grossed about 128 million worldwide, highlighting solid performance for a light hearted mainstream romantic comedy aimed at families, with broad foreign interest and steady home video after release in many markets globally.

Blended sits in the middle of the Sandler Barrymore collaborations offering a familiar mix of pratfalls and tenderness. The resort setting and family friendly jokes reinforced a recipe that fans returned to, helping the duo sustain their pairing as easy going date night options on streaming and broadcast nights alike.

Critics gave a mixed verdict, praising the chemistry between Sandler and Barrymore while noting that the film sticks to familiar rom com rhythms. Its themes emphasize adapting to family life after loss, the value of cooperation, and finding humor in chaos for everyday families in hectic schedules today and beyond.