The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, and Anthony Mackie as three childhood friends who annually reunite on Christmas Eve in search of the best party in New York City.

Chris, now a famous football player, and Isaac, married with a baby on the way, worry that Ethan, a struggling musician working dead-end jobs, is not ready for the tradition to end.

Before embarking on their last Christmas Eve together, the friends meet at Isaac's house, where his pregnant wife Betsy gives him various recreational drugs, including magic mushrooms and cocaine.

She encourages Ethan to make up with Diana, and Isaac realizes he has accidentally switched phones with Sarah when he begins to receive sexts.

Isaac, hallucinating from a mixture of drugs, meets his wife and her family and vomits on the church floor during Midnight Mass.

Ethan is beaten by two drunk pub crawling men dressed as Santa after defending the spirit of Christmas.

Chris learns that his teammates did not need the marijuana he struggled to obtain, and they mock him for a video shot earlier with Isaac and Ethan.

Ethan finds Diana and spontaneously proposes to her in front of the entire party due to Miley Cyrus' encouragement.

Ashamed, Ethan goes to the roof where he finds Mr. Green, who reveals that he is the creator and host of the Nutcracker Ball.

[10] On August 8, Lizzy Caplan joined the cast to play Diana, a love interest of Gordon-Levitt's character.

[4] In the United States, The Night Before opened alongside The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 and Secret in Their Eyes on November 20, 2015.

The site's critical consensus reads, "The Night Before provokes enough belly laughs to qualify as a worthwhile addition to the list of Christmas comedies worth revisiting, even if it isn't quite as consistent as the classics.