Malcolm D. Lee Still Has ‘Unfinished Business’ With ‘The Best Man’

Ahead of his literary debut, "The Best Man" writer-director Malcolm D. Lee reflected on his iconic franchise's legacy, his longtime passion for novel writing and what inspired him to revisit the beloved characters who launched his career in the late '90s. Illustration: Kelly Caminero/HuffPost; Photo:Getty Images

When “The Best Man: The Final Chapters” premiered on Peacock in late 2022, fans of the iconic rom-com thought that was officially the end of the road for Harper (Taye Diggs), Jordan (Nia Long), Robyn (Sanaa Lathan), Lance (Morris Chestnut), Murch (Harold Perrineau), Candace (Regina Hall), Quentin (Terrence Howard) and Shelby (Melissa De Sousa) — and so did creator-director Malcolm D. Lee.

“When I finished the television show, I felt like we had done what we were supposed to do in terms of giving back to the fans and wrapping up the story,” the filmmaker admits, reflecting on the journey that began with his 1999 directorial debut and all-time classic film, “The Best Man.”

Between then and now, Lee’s franchise has endured, first with a sequel film, 2013’s “The Best Man Holiday,” and later an eight-part limited series that reunited its ensemble cast — affectionately dubbed “The Black Pack” — in midlife, as they navigated parenthood, personal invention and their ever-evolving relationships.

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The record-setting Peacock show was meant to tie up loose ends and serve as a final farewell for fans. However, when an exciting new opportunity arose for Lee to revive his beloved franchise, he jumped at the chance, and in the most fitting, full-circle way.

Taye Diggs as Harper and Sanaa Lathan as Robyn in Lee's 1999 directorial debut "The Best Man." Everett Collection

Devoted fans of“The Best Man” will remember that Harper’s provocative debut novel, “Unfinished Business,” exposed his one-night stand with his college best friend’s bride, thus setting off the explosive chain of drama that ensued in the original film. The repercussions of the scandalous book rippled through “The Best Man Holiday” and, more subtly, in “The Final Chapters.”

Now, more than 25 years later, that same fictional novel has become the springboard for Lee’s own literary debut, “The Best Man: Unfinished Business.”

Fans were thrilled when Lee announced his book plans back in April. For many, revisiting his franchise’s origins through a novel felt like something that should’ve happened long ago, but Lee admits that he’s “fantasized about writing novels” for some time now. He just needed the right offer to make his dream a reality.

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“I got to that place where there was an opportunity to try my hand at [it],” says Lee, noting that he was once too immersed in filmmaking to pursue the author path. That is, until Storehouse Voices, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, stepped up and agreed to continue “The Best Man” as a book trilogy, the first installment of which hits shelves on July 1.

“This felt like the right time to do it,” Lee continues. “Here’s an opportunity to tell a little bit more story with some characters that are already established, that have backstory, and there’s still more to say.”

He adds, “I think there is unfinished business with these characters.”

Lee set out to make “Unfinished Business” a cinematic literary work, which is why he says he chose accomplished author Jayne Allen to co-write his debut with him. “She was really good in that regard,” the filmmaker adds, “and challenged me where I needed to be challenged and pushed where I needed to pull, and vice versa.” Courtesy of Storehouse Voices

Staying true to his franchise, Lee teamed up with acclaimed author Jayne Allen (“Black Girls Must Die Exhausted”) to bring Harper and friends back to the pages that started it all. Their spicy page-turner picks up where “The Final Chapters” left off, following Harper, Jordan and Robyn in new phases of their professional and personal lives as unresolved feelings threaten to upend their present. The rest of the crew — Shelby, Quentin, Lance, Murch and Candace — offer support as the trio fight for their second act (and second chances), but pain from the past makes the journey anything but easy.

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Lee knew that if he was going to open the door on “The Best Man” again, his book needed to address the root of some lingering questions from “The Final Chapters,” most notably what really led to Harper and Robyn’s nasty divorce.

“I think it’s a natural progression for all the characters,” Lee tells me of how he decided where to take the story next. “And I wanted to explore life after divorce for [Harper], and what that was gonna feel like and how he was gonna adjust to that.”

“Unfinished Business” opens with Harper enjoying the perks of fame as a newly minted Pulitzer Prize-winning author. The single bachelor has been living it up in his Brooklyn penthouse as he works on the outline for his “Unfinished Business” Hollywood sequel. It’s mostly the life he asked for after failing to make his marriage work with Robyn. But as the book reveals, something (or rather someone) is still missing.

“He doesn’t quite fit into his life and his [married] friend group the way he used to when he had Robyn in his life,” Lee explains of Harper’s arc, which shakes things up on all sides throughout the book.

According to Lee, the “Final Chapters” writers' room had arguments about whether to take Harper and Jordan’s (Taye Diggs and Nia Long, pictured) relationship to the next level in the series. Ultimately, the creator says he felt like the “timing wasn't right for them to be together.” Everett Collection

Across the country is Jordan, now living her very best (single) life on the West Coast after saying goodbye to the busy corporate grind. She, too, is still making sense of her new environment amid a career pivot and midlife renaissance, which eventually pulls her right back into Harper’s orbit — much to the delight of longtime fans.

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Ever since their college hookup was famously cut short — shoutout to that unforgettable skip on Stevie Wonder’s “As” — Harper and Jordan have straddled the line between close friends and something more. Their efforts to turn that sexual tension into a relationship have fallen flat over the years, but now that they’re both partnerless again, Lee says he “certainly wanted to explore what the two of them exploring together would be like” in his book.

“People are waiting to see what the answer to the question is: Will Harper and Jordan ever have their night? Will they ever be together? Are they truly soulmates?” the author adds. “And I think the book certainly poses that question.”

Sanaa Lathan as Robyn and Taye Diggs as Harper in a scene from Peacock's "The Best Man: The Final Chapters." Peacock via Getty Images

Another storyline that “Unfinished Business” dives into is Robyn’s new life in Ghana, where she’s now raising her and Harper’s daughter, Mia. Now fully embracing her bohemian restaurateur dreams, the new divorcée is stepping into true independence for the first time since meeting Harper, though not without challenges. She’s navigating the brutal realities of launching her own restaurant and attempting to revive her love life, all while still dealing with her and Harper’s complicated coparenting relationship.

It’s a much more nuanced perspective on Robyn that builds on what was hinted at in “The Final Chapters.” As Lee tells it, her newfound journey serves as a somewhat direct response to how audiences reacted to her shockingly divorcing Harper and moving across the ocean with their daughter.

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“There were some real visceral reactions to Robyn’s decision to not only get divorced, but to take Mia with her away from Harper,” Lee explains. “I wanted an opportunity to explore her psyche, and do it in a country where many of us and our ancestors came from, were abducted from.”

“I got an opportunity to actually go to Ghana and spend time there,” he adds. “And in doing so, really helped to enrich the storytelling of Robyn and her journey, and how she feels reborn and reinvented in Accra.”

(L-R) Monica Calhoun as Mia, Melissa De Sousa as Shelby and Nia Long as Jordan in "The Best Man Holiday." ©Universal /Everett Collection

In a way, Lee’s franchise is experiencing its own rebirth with his book trilogy. And for the first time in his career, the writer-director isn’t bound by script pages, casting logistics or the burden of coordinating production schedules when it comes to the “Best Man” universe. While Lee still loves the Hollywood craft, writing a novel has given him the freedom to delve into his endearing characters in a “much more expansive way than you could ever do in movies and television.”

“That’s why I really love the experience,” Lee says of his book. “There are a good number of people who were like, ‘Oh, why didn’t I do another movie?’ But this book is, I have to say, a great follow-up to the [‘Best Man’] movies [and series].”

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He adds, “Just [cinematically], the sounds are there, the feels are there, there’s more there. People want more. They’re getting more with this book.”

For more than two decades, Lee has kept Black IP alive and audiences fed with his timeless franchise, which is no small feat in today’s regressive industry. He credits much of that success to the loyal fans who have remained invested throughout every chapter of the cultural landmark, from a chaotic wedding eve to a heartbreaking loss to the growing pains of middle-aged adulting.

“Fortunately, these are characters that people feel very close to,” says Lee. “And so this franchise is nothing without the fans who support it. We’ve been lucky in that regard that we’re writing engaging stories.”

(L-R): Morris Chestnut as Lance, Harold Perrineau as Murch, Terrence Howard as Quentin and Taye Diggs as Harper in "The Best Man." ©Universal / Everett Collection

Lee has a few screen projects underway, including a TV adaptation of Kennedy Ryan’s bestselling novel “Before I Let Go,” which he’s both directing and executive producing. He also recently wrapped filming on an erotic thriller for Blumhouse, starring Chloe Bailey, Coco Jones and Lynn Whitfield. But on the literary front, he’s gearing up for the next two installments of the “Unfinished Business” trilogy, both expected to drop sometime next year. And fans can rest assured — those novels will delve into the rest of the “Best Man” crew, too.

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Although Lee knows audiences will be anticipating an “Unfinished Business” movie or TV adaptation down the line, his current priority is simply getting his books out into the world — and then, he says, “we’ll see what happens.”

“If the opportunity comes along to do so, I’ll listen,” he says. “But there’s not a lot of coordination that has to happen [right now] other than the creative process [of writing the books].”

He concludes, “And that’s a wonderful thing, to not have to wait years and years and years for the next iteration of this.”

“The Best Man: Unfinished Business” will be available for purchase on July 1 wherever books are sold.

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