In 1997, Lisa Kudrow and Mira Sorvino starred in one of the best friendship comedies ever made: Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion. According to Sorvino, a Reunion-reunion is in the works, and the only thing standing between us and a Romy and Michele sequel is … Emily in Paris.
Speaking with Us Weekly, Sorvino confirmed that the Romy and Michele sequel is officially “full force ahead.” Sorvino and Kudrow are returning to star in and executive produce the sequel to the 1997 comedy about two ditzy high school misfits and best friends who come up with a half-baked plan to impress the former popular kids at their 10-year reunion. En route to their hometown, Romy (Sorvino) and Michele (Kudrow) reminisce about how they became friends and the bullying they endured, and decide to get revenge by pretending to be successful business women.
As much as it pains me to say this, it’s been 27 whole years since Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion was released. That’s one year younger than Romy and Michele were in the movie! The sequel could actually hit theaters for the movie’s 28th anniversary, but production depends on original screenwriter Robin Schiff, who based Romy and Michele on her 1988 play, Ladies’ Room. According to Sorvino, Schiff is “currently working on Emily in Paris, so she’s finishing up her draft to present to the studio.”
As of now, only Sorvino and Kudrow are set to reprise their roles from Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, which also starred Janeane Garofalo, Alan Cumming, Justin Theroux, Camryn Manheim, Vincent Ventresca, Julia Campbell, and Elaine Hendrix. In a chat with The A.V. Club in 2023, Cumming said it was “terrible” that a sequel hadn’t been made yet, but that he’s definitely down to reprise his role as Sandy, a dweeby teen who returns to the reunion as a successful millionaire. “I’d be very in for it,” Cumming said. “You know, I have such fond memories of that film. And obviously it’s sort of this cultural iconic thing, and everybody of a certain generation, it’s really a special thing for them.”
The end of Romy and Michele saw the eponymous duo—who turned out many DIY lewks in the film—starting their own fashion line and opening a trendy store. Since they’re waiting for Schiff to finish her script, Sorvino wasn’t able to share any plot details, but she did discuss her hopes for the sequel “I just still want them to be as relatable, but also as dumb and lovable as they ever were,” Sorvino said. “Like, I don’t think they’ve learned that much in the time in between, but they still have that unstoppable spirit and that friendship and that idiocy that makes everybody kind of love them. And so, that essential nature of them and the heart that’s at the center of that, that heart has to stay there.”
(featured image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
