Get out your Windex! "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," the little indie picture that surprised everyone in 2002 by raking in over $240 million in domestic box office, is coming back for a new installment — with creator/star Nia Vardalos and co-star John Corbett already attached to the production, says The Hollywood Reporter.
Vardalos confirmed the news on her Twitter feed Tuesday, indicating that everyone is invited back to the party:
THR also reported that "everyone" also includes original producers Rita Wilson, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman; Vardalos will be among the executive producers. The new script will focus on a family secret and a new wedding.
Word of a sequel has been floating around for some time. Vardalos told The Huffington Post in 2012, "(I)t's only now that I've really become open to the idea (of a sequel). ... But then when John (Corbett) and I recently sat down to do that interview (for the 10th anniversary Blu-Ray edition of the film), we laughed so hard through the whole thing. It made me think that it's time. He said, 'Come on, write something, will you?' And I now think I will. We have such an easy chemistry together."
Made for just $5 million, the original "Big Fat Greek Wedding" turned into a sleeper hit, with the story of a schlumpy Greek-American (Vardalos) who falls for the non-Greek hunk of her dreams (Corbett) and blossoms in the process. But once the pair is engaged, the real challenge starts: He has to win over her extremely close-knit family, which includes a father who believes a little squirt of ammonia spray can cure anything.
The film started out as a one-woman play starring Vardalos, based on her real-life experiences (she wed "Cougar Town" actor Ian Gomez in 1993; they adopted a child in 2008), and took place in Winnipeg, Canada; for the film the location was moved to Chicago. A CBS sitcom, "My Big Fat Greek Life," was created to spin off of the movie's success in 2003, but only lasted for a few episodes.
Could the sequel be even better than the original? Seems hard to imagine, but as the TODAY anchors noted Wednesday, some No. 2 movies in a series do just that: They rhapsodized over 1999's "Toy Story 2," 1974's "The Godfather: Part II," and 1980's "Superman II," while Carson Daly noted that "Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back" "took it to another level."
Follow Randee Dawn on Google+.