The film won much praise and critical acclaim after premiering at the SXSW festival in the US,[3] and was a success at the box office in the UK and the U.S., where it received a limited release.

The next morning, Glen coaxes Russell to speak into a voice recorder about the previous night, for an art project.

The two learn about each other, and share a bicycle ride back to Russell's flat, where they continue discovering more about each other's pasts.

Glen explains that his art project seeks to explore the gap between who people are and who they want to be, as demonstrated by the personas they assume when hooking up with someone for the first time.

She then tells Russell that she and her friends do not expect Glen to travel to America, to the point that they started a bet.

Glen notes that he is leaving by train that afternoon, while Russell has Jamie's daughter's birthday party to attend.

[5] The promotion and production stills were shot by photography team Quinnford & Scout (Colin Quinn and Oisín Share), whose work inspired Haigh's design on location.

[6][7][8] During a Q&A session at the IFI in Dublin on 11 November 2011, Director Andrew Haigh said the film's budget was "around 120,000" — not specifying a currency.

[9] Weekend received its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas in March 2011.

The website's critical consensus reads "It may be a chamber piece but Weekend's revelations on modern sexuality expand far beyond the modest setting.

"[11] Roger Ebert described it as "a smart, sensitive, perceptive film, with actors well suited to the dialogue.

"[12] Wesley Morris of the Boston Globe wrote it is “One of the truest, most beautiful movies ever made about two strangers.”[13] Lisa Schwarzbaum from Entertainment Weekly wrote “British filmmaker Andrew Haigh‘s background in editing (from Gladiator to Mister Lonely) is evident in the casual beauty of moments that only appear “found,” giving Weekend an engrossing documentary feel.”[13] Eric Hynes from the Village Voice wrote: “Naturalistic without being ineloquent, heartfelt yet unsentimental, Weekend is the rarest of birds: a movie romance that rings true.”[13] The film has received several awards and nominations:[14][15] A "director-approved special edition" of Weekend was released by The Criterion Collection on both DVD and Blu-ray on 21 August 2012.

The film was shunned by the more than 1,100 cinemas owned by the Catholic Church that comprise the bulk of Italy's network of independent/arthouse theaters.