If you open Netflix today you’ll notice a comforting title sitting in the “Trending Now” row: The Four Seasons.
What might surprise you is that Netflix has doubled the treat — you can stream both the beloved 1981 film and Tina Fey’s brand-new eight-episode modern adaptation that premiered May 1.
Here’s everything you need to know before pressing play, plus a few fun parallels you may not have caught.
1. A Quick Refresher on the 1981 Original
Written, directed by, and starring Alan Alda, The Four Seasons captures one calendar year in the lives of three affluent middle-aged couples who vacation together every spring, summer, fall, and winter.
The ensemble — Alda, Carol Burnett, Sandy Dennis, Len Cariou, Jack Weston, and Rita Moreno — trades Manhattan neuroses for holiday homes in Vermont and sailboats off Martha’s Vineyard. When one marriage implodes and a much younger new girlfriend joins the circle, decades-old obligations are tested in painfully funny ways.
Unlike the high-concept comedies of its era, The Four Seasons mined laughs from everyday anxieties: middle-age malaise, parenting adult children, and the creeping fear that your friends have outgrown you.
Alda’s screenplay treats those jitters with empathy, which is why The Four Seasons still lands in “comfort movie” lists more than forty years later.
2. How Tina Fey Revived The Four Seasons for 2025
Fast-forward to 2025 and Fey, along with co-creators Lang Fisher (Never Have I Ever) and Tracey Wigfield (30 Rock), wanted a project that felt “cozy yet sharp.”
They re-watched The Four Seasons, reached out to Alda for his blessing, and built a series that keeps the skeleton of the film — four two-episode arcs, one for each season — while updating the social commentary.
Key Casting Updates
| 1981 Film | 2025 Series |
|---|---|
| Alan Alda → Jack Weston → Carol Burnett | Tina Fey as pragmatic Kate |
| Will Forte as affable Jack | |
| Steve Carell as restless Nick | |
| Kerri Kenney-Silver as heart-on-sleeve Anne | |
| Colman Domingo & Marco Calvani as married couple Danny & Claude | |
| Newcomer | Erika Henningsen as Nick’s optimistic new partner Ginny |
Fey’s version keeps the vacations — a Puerto Rican eco-resort replaces the film’s Caribbean cruise; the fall leaf-peeping trip shifts to a Vermont farm wedding — and leans harder into modern stressors: climate guilt, adult children moving back home, and the minefield of second-marriage etiquette.
3. Themes That Still Hit Home
Friendship vs. Familiarity
Both versions of The Four Seasons ask: When does tradition become obligation? Watching the group bicker over who books airfare or who hogs the grill is hilarious precisely because we’ve been there.
Marriage in Mid-Life
Alda’s film treated divorce as a slow-motion earthquake; Fey widens the lens to include open marriages, blended families, and late-in-life parenthood. Yet the ache is identical: growing older means renegotiating vows you thought were settled.
Cozy Escapism
Sweaters in Vermont, Aperol spritzes on an Italian balcony, and grief-healing hot-tub chats — The Four Seasons makes middle-class travel fantasies feel attainable. In stressful times, the series doubles as four mini-getaways.
4. Should You Watch the Movie First?
Not mandatory, but highly rewarding. Episode 1 of the series is dotted with callbacks: Tina Fey’s character slicing lemons like Burnett did, a clumsy sail lesson mirroring Alda’s, even a near-identical group photo gone wrong. Seeing the original deepens the nostalgia factor and spotlights how cleverly Fey subverts expectations (the younger girlfriend role, for instance, is now a Gen Z step-mom influencer rather than a wide-eyed 20-something).
5. Fun Easter Eggs to Spot
- Arlene Alda’s Coffee-Table Photo Book – resting on Kate’s Parisian Airbnb nightstand in episode 3.
- “Jonathan Livingston Seagull” – the very paperback Nick pretends to read on the 1981 sailboat appears dog-eared in Jack’s backpack.
- Carol Burnett Cameo? – no spoilers, but keep your ears perked during the winter-episode voicemail.
6. Critical & Audience Reception So Far
- The Four Seasons movie holds a 92% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes after its Netflix debut.
- The new series debuted at #3 globally in its first 48 hours, with social sentiment praising “throwback vibes” and “tissue-level finale.”
Verdict: Stream Both for a Perfect Two-Night Marathon
Night 1: 108-minute film + series premiere “Spring, Pt 1”
Night 2: Remaining 7 episodes (at 34–38 minutes each)
You’ll finish the binge feeling like you just spent a year with old friends — arguing, laughing, occasionally crying, but always booking the next vacation together.
In a sea of grim prestige TV, The Four Seasons reminds us that mid-life messiness can be hilarious, hopeful, and ultimately healing.
Where to Watch
- The Four Seasons (1981) – Now streaming on Netflix (HD, closed-captioned).
- The Four Seasons (2025 series) – Season 1 streaming in full on Netflix, Season 2 in development.
Pack your parka, your swimsuit, and maybe a bottle of antacid — you’re invited to every season’s celebration.
