Walt Disney Pictures is developing a sequel to its hit 2003 body-swap comedy Freaky Friday.
As confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter, a sequel to the 2003 iteration of Freaky Friday is currently in the works at Disney. Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan are attached to reprise their roles as Tess and Anna Coleman, respectively. Elyse Hollander (It Was Romance, An Ode to Demons) is attached to pen the script.
(Freaky) Friday, Never Hesitate
Directed by Mark Waters from a script by Heather Hach and Leslie Dixon, the first Freaky Friday film starring Curtis and Lohan released in theaters in August 2003. It follows Tess Coleman (Curtis), the widowed mother of aspiring teenage musician Anna (Lohan) and her younger brother, Harry (Ryan Malgarini). Tess and Anna's fractious relationship comes to a head when they awake one day to discover they have magically switched bodies. They are forced to quite literally walk a mile in each other's shoes, ultimately coming to understand one another better. Upon its release 20 years ago, Freaky Friday was a considerable success, being met with positive reviews and grossing $160.8 million against a budget of $26 million.
Waters' Freaky Friday is based on the 1972 novel of the same name by the late Mary Rodgers. In fact, the 2003 film was actually Disney's third feature-length adaptation of Rodgers' book. Walt Disney Pictures first adapted Freaky Friday in the '70s, with a film directed by Gary Nelson from a screenplay by Rodgers herself premiering in Los Angeles in December 1976 before getting a wide theatrical release in January 1977. Walt Disney Television later adapted Freaky Friday as a made-for-TV film, which was directed by Melanie Mayron from a script by Stu Krieger and premiered on ABC in 1995. Following the 2003 big-screen version starring Curtis and Lohan, Disney again rebooted Freaky Friday for the small screen just a few years ago. The fourth adaptation of Rodgers' novel premiered as a Disney Channel Original Movie in 2018 from writer Bridget Carpenter and director Steve Carr.
A Freaky Friday Sequel Has Been Teased Before
Despite the 2018 remake, there have been murmurs of a potential follow-up to the 2003 version of Freaky Friday. Just last October, Curtis said she would "absolutely" return for a sequel if Disney asked her to. A mere month later, Curtis confirmed that she and Lohan were committed to the idea of doing a sequel, and were simply waiting for the go-ahead from Disney -- which they have now apparently gotten. "[T]he right people are talking... Let's try to get another one made," Curtis said at the time.
Disney's Freaky Friday sequel does not have a release date.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter