Spinal Tap II: The End Continues

Around forty years after the first film, director Martin “Marty” DiBergi creates a documentary about the reunion and final show of the legendary rock band Spın̈al Tap. He visits Hope Faith, the daughter of Spın̈al Tap’s original manager Ian Faith, John Michael Higgins, and discovers that she inherited a contract insisting Tap perform one more concert. Marty then tracks down the band’s original trio: Nigel Tufnel, Christopher Guest; Derek Smalls, Harry Shearer; and David St. Hubbins, Michael McKean. Nigel, now running a cheese-and-guitar shop with girlfriend Moira, also plays guitar in a local folk group; David works as a producer for true-crime podcasts and on-hold music; Derek curates a glue museum and even endures a memorable nose-nose encounter with a glue bottle. Despite lingering tensions between Nigel and David, the three agree to reunite for one more performance.

The group soon realizes they need a drummer, since their previous drummers have met mysterious ends. Interest in Tap surges after a video of Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood performing their song “Big Bottom” goes viral. They locate a sleazy promoter, Simon Howler, and head to New Orleans to rehearse for an arena slot swapped in to replace Stormy Daniels. Turned down by Questlove, Chad Smith, and Lars Ulrich as potential drummers, Tap auditions a spirited young rocker woman, Didi Crockett, who finally earns a spot. They also bring on keyboardist CJ “Caucasian Jerry” Vanston. Old manager Bobbi Flekman, now a Buddhist after years of stress, is revealed during the process, while PR man Artie Fufkin has become a used-car salesman.

The band, living in a “ghost house” tourist attraction, endures being served a whole-alligator supper while ghost-meter-wielding tourists wander about. It’s revealed that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rejected Tap’s membership with a blunt letter reading, “Fuck off, sincerely yours,” and Hope and promoter Simon propose that Tap establish their own hall of fame, a design that resembles an IHOP site and features themselves. Nigel shows Marty a tiny cavity in his guitar containing a piece of cheese and a grater. As the band contemplates aging and mortality, Derek composes a new piece called “Rockin’ in the Urn.”

Rehearsals are fraught, with Nigel and David struggling to connect musically. Paul McCartney drops by to offer practical advice, and later tells Marty that “Big Bottom” is “almost literature.” Paul McCartney also notes the enduring appeal of their work, even offering suggestions that help shape their approach. Elton John visits as well, though Simon dismisses him; Elton performs Tap’s “Flower People” and agrees to sing “Stonehenge,” providing a glimmer of mid-show collaboration.

The backstage chaos thickens: the stage manager unveils a large, life-sized model of a woman’s bottom for “Big Bottom,” which produces comically loud flatulence, unsettling the band. Didi asks for her drum platform to be moved closer to the trio, and Derek makes a bold pass at Didi, who calls in her girlfriend for support. Simon even tries to push Tap into dance training, intending to turn them into a pop-style act; at one point, he previously suggested that at least one member die in concert to create a lucrative tribute opportunity. He ends up abandoning Tap, claiming he must visit his birth mother. Meanwhile, David confronts Nigel about an alleged affair with Jeanine, which Nigel denies.

David, wandering through New Orleans, encounters a Black bluesman whose song reminds him of the old days with Nigel; he forgives Nigel, even as Nigel pleads his innocence. When the concert finally begins, the crowd roars for Tap’s classic hits. Yet during “Stonehenge,” a towering prop of stones descends, tipping perilously as Didi’s drum platform shifts. Two small people in druid robes accidentally knock the prop over, crushing the piano, Elton John, and the trio. Elton screams, “Fuck Spinal Tap!” The group survives, recovering in a hospital room. Derek then confesses that he was the one who had the affair with Jeanine. In the closing scene, Marty sits in a restaurant, congratulating Didi on being the only surviving Tap drummer; she smiles, eats a healthy fruit-and-nut diet, and chokes, prompting Marty to perform the Heimlich maneuver as the screen freezes on an open-ended, uncertain outcome.

Last Updated: October 14, 2025 at 04:08