Always a bridesmaid, never a bride — unless, of course, your best friend gets engaged to the love of your life, you make a spontaneous wish for true love, and then magically wake up as the bride-to-be. That’s the pickle in which Lindsay Lohan (Mean Girls, The Parent Trap) finds herself in the upcoming romantic comedy Irish Wish. 

Directed by Janeen Damian (Falling for Christmas), produced by Brad Krevoy and Michael Damian, and written by Kirsten Hansen, Irish Wish follows shy book editor Maddie Kelly (Lohan) on a supernatural, romantic journey of self-discovery. “She’s been ghostwriting for the writer she works for and she’s hopelessly in love with him, and she’s expecting him to love her back,” Lohan tells Tudum. But when reciprocation proves elusive, she takes matters into her own hands — only to find that romantic fantasies don’t always hold up to the harsh light of reality. 

“It’s a nice story of luck and love and confidence,” Lohan says about the film, the first of her two-picture creative partnership with Netflix. Read more about Irish Wish below. And remember, be careful what you wish for. 

Patrick Redmond

What is Irish Wish about?

When the love of her life gets engaged to her best friend, Maddie puts her feelings aside to be a bridesmaid at their wedding in Ireland. Days before the pair are set to marry, Maddie makes a spontaneous wish for true love and finds herself in an alternate reality where a chance encounter shows her that sometimes you need to be careful who you wish for. With her dream seeming to come true, Maddie soon realizes that her real soulmate is someone else entirely.

Lohan is no stranger to the romantic comedy genre — the film’s humor, and especially its emphasis on physical comedy, was the reason she felt drawn to the project. Still, Irish Wish felt like an exciting new challenge for the actor and executive producer, a chance to showcase a different side of herself as a performer. “Maddie’s [one of the only] characters that I’ve played [who’s] a woman on her own making her way in the world,” she says. “We shaped her in a way that she was a bit more insecure in the beginning, and then she grows throughout the movie, and by the end, she really comes into her own.”

Maddie’s journey to independence and self-love resonated deeply with Lohan, who hopes audiences will feel seen in the same way she did. “It’s important to put yourself first and know your worth,” she says. “If you know you deserve better, go for it and get it.”

Lohan describes a convivial, friendly set — she and Curry bonded on- and off-screen, planning dinners, spa days, and movie nights. (“We watched Paranormal Activity,” Lohan says.) 

Curry plays Heather, whom the actor describes as “that classic best friend who’s always going to be there for you, tell it to you straight, but is there to have a good time and laugh and carry on and create memories.”  

“It was great working with Lindsay,” Curry says. “She’s the ultimate professional, and it’s one of those situations where when they yell ‘action’ and she gets going, you kind of get lost in the scene and forget what you’re doing because you just want to watch her. That was probably the biggest struggle on set, you forget you’re there to work and not to watch!”

Curry adds: “I wanted to be a part of this story because, for one, I love classic rom-coms and this is just the epitome of that. I’m excited to be a part of something I hope will become a classic staple in people’s households that they’ll watch more than once. I also got to do it with my friend, and who doesn’t want to work with their friend?”

Speleers echoes Curry in his praise for his co-star. “This world, this sphere of filmmaking comes very naturally for [Lindsay Lohan],” he tells Tudum. “She has a great approach to the work and is very much in tune with her comedic bones. This was my first out and out rom-com, and to team up with Lindsay and film in the stunning Republic of Ireland felt like the perfect way to venture into this genre.”

In fact, the romantic comedy marked a welcome change of pace for Speleers, who’d just finished filming an intense character arc as Rhys Montrose in You’s fourth season. “It was quite the adjustment jumping into James’ shoes after playing Rhys,” he says. “James is like the straight line through the film — he has a dry wit, if not somewhat sarcastic at times. But this comes from a good place; he’s curious about the world and people, and I felt that he’s a real observer. I found him to be very comfortable in himself. He’s certainly not as intense as some of the individuals I’ve played recently.”

Who is in the cast of Irish Wish?

Patrick Redmond

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Lindsay Lohan

as Maddie Kelly 

About the Character

Maddie is a brilliant book editor and aspiring writer who works closely with popular romance novelist Paul Kennedy — so closely that she practically writes his novels for him. But she’s also secretly pining for him, and she’s devastated when he falls for her best friend Emma before she can bring herself to confess her feelings. 

 

When she travels to Ireland for their wedding, Maddie makes a wish to Saint Brigid that launches her into an alternate reality as Paul’s bride-to-be. Chaos ensues, and after a chance meeting with charming photographer James, Maddie starts to wonder if she truly wants her longtime dream to become her reality. Her magical journey through Ireland’s green moors might help her find her voice, the man of her dreams, and maybe even a newfound love of Guinness.

 

“Maddie is a bit more insecure in the beginning, and I really wanted to show that,” Lohan says about her character. “And then she grows throughout the movie and by the end she really comes into her own.”

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Ed Speleers

as James Thomas

About the Character

Described by Maddie as a “cheeky English guy,” James is a nature photographer with a witty sense of humor and a wandering spirit. You won’t catch him in one place for too long: He’s always ready to travel the world with nothing but his camera and his passport. But could fate have other plans? When he’s hired as Paul and Maddie’s wedding photographer, James starts to realize that being tied to one place might not be such a bad thing — with the right company, of course. 

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Patrick Redmond

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Alexander Vlahos 

as Paul Kennedy

About the Character

On paper, Paul is the perfect man. A dreamy romance writer with a family mansion in Ireland? No wonder Maddie — and  Emma, for that matter — fall head over heels. But once Maddie’s wish comes true and Paul turns his attention to her, she starts to wonder if he’s who she really wants.  

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Ayesha Curry 

as Heather

About the Character

Heather is one of Maddie’s longtime BFFs — and her most loyal. A girl’s girl through and through, she has Maddie’s back no matter the situation. 

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A Black Lady Sketch Show, The Bold Type, About Last Night

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Elizabeth Tan

as Emma 

About the Character

Emma has been one of Maddie’s best friends since childhood. She’s fun, a good dancer, and a fashionista who has a lot in common with Paul. 

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Jane Seymour 

as Rosemary Kelly

About the Character

Maddie’s assertive and direct mother is a high school principal in Des Moines, Iowa. Despite their long-distance relationship, Rosemary is very supportive of her daughter, and checks in with Maddie often, encouraging her to find her voice. 

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Somewhere in Time; Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman; Wedding Crashers

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Where was Irish Wish filmed?

Irish Wish is set in the rolling green moors of Ireland and was filmed on location in Wicklow, on the country’s eastern coast. 

Lohan, whose family can trace their roots back to Italy and Ireland, jumped at the chance to explore this side of her heritage. “Ireland’s so beautiful,” she says. “I’d never been, [but] my grandfather’s from there. We stayed in this little town called Dalkey. The people are so nice, and the Guinness pies were amazing.”

But it was getting to work with her younger brother, Dakota, who also appears in Irish Wish, that made the experience feel all the more meaningful for Lohan — even if it did unlock her more mischievous side. “Whenever [I’m] with family, I’m really bad at not cracking up for some reason,” she says. “I make funny faces when I’m off camera just to mess with them.”

The rest of the cast also took advantage of the film’s idyllic setting to do some sightseeing. “That place has the most epic views and vistas and history,” Curry says. “There’s so much history there, and getting to explore that a little bit in between shoot days was really cool.”

 “I’d often find myself with a morning to go off-trail running and discover some of the stunning countryside,” Speleers adds. “Two of my favorite runs were Glendalough and running up Djouce Mountain, then heading back to the coast for a decent bit of grub at the excellent Happy Pear in Greystones.”

Where can I watch the trailer for Irish Wish?

You can watch the trailer at the top of this article, or let yourself be swept away by the magic of the musical trailer below. 

Let This Irish Wish Song Whisk You Away on a Romantic Adventure

When is the release date for Irish Wish?

Irish Wish is now streaming on Netflix, just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. 

What other Lindsay Lohan movies can I watch on Netflix?

Get your Lohan fix with Falling for Christmas, now streaming on Netflix. In Falling, Lohan stars as a newly engaged heiress who suffers amnesia after a skiing accident and finds herself in the care of a handsome lodge owner. In other words, whether she’s falling in love in Ireland or over the holiday season, Lohan and her latest rom-com era are here to prove wishes really do come true.

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