When the Nickelodeon show “Zoey 101” ended its four-season run, in 2008, Zoey (Jamie Lynn Spears) finally got together with Chase (Sean Flynn), putting a fairy tale ending on a will-they-or-won’t-they relationship that fascinated a large slice of early-2000s tweens. A decade and a half later, in “Zoey 102,” a movie-length sequel to (and update of) the show, the two have become estranged. Years before, Zoey ghosted Chase during a trip to Hawaii.
Yet the biggest surprise of this serviceable revival, directed by Nancy Hower (the show was created by Dan Schneider), is that Zoey has become a bit of a washed-up has-been. She used to be the pretty, popular center of attention at Pacific Coast Academy, where the original show was set; now, she’s an overworked television producer flailing in her love life. Zoey is forced to see many of her old friends again at the wedding of Quinn (Erin Sanders) and Logan (Matthew Underwood), the subjects of a B-plot romance in the original show. To impress Chase, Zoey hires a man (Dean Geyer) to pose as her boyfriend.
It’s not an easy task to make a movie out of a kids’ show from a bygone era, but the film does a relatively smooth job of dipping into — but not overdoing — the nostalgia and retaining the lighthearted, wacky tone that was the show’s signature. It helps that the cast members, now older, are better performers. Even if there’s a ceiling to how much can be achieved here, returning fans wanting a reminder of their youths will get just enough of what they came for.
Zoey 102
Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 41 minutes. Watch on Paramount+.
