Anne Hathaway in ‘The Princess Diaries’ in 2001.
Can Anne Hathaway once again wear the Genovia crown? If Disney had his way, then he would. It’s still very early days, but according to The Hollywood Reporter, there are plans for a third outing for ‘The Princess Diaries’.
Based on the novel series created by Meg Cabot that launched in 2000, the 2001 original saw Hathaway as Mia Thermopolis, a socially awkward but happy teenager who lives and attends a private school in San Francisco with her mother and cat.
Mia’s life is thrown upside down when she learns from her mother Helen Thermopolis (Caroline Goodall) that her late father, Philippe Renaldi (Rene Auberjonois), was the Crown Prince of Genovia.
To keep the reigns of the kingdom from being passed on to other families due to a damaged bloodline, Queen Clarisse Renaldi (Dame Julie Andrews) seeks the help of her estranged granddaughter in hopes that she will succeed her father as Crown Princess. While Mia contemplates her future, her grandmother insists on turning her from a social misfit into a woman fit for the throne.
And that, of course, causes further chaos for Mia and best friend Lilly Moscovitz (Heather Matarazzo) as she figures out how to navigate school, hormones, and the challenges of small European country.
Most of the cast returned for the sequel – 2004’s ‘The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement’ – which added extra wrinkles, including the presence of Chris Pine’s Nicholas Devereaux, a potential threat to Mia’s claim to the throne who ends up as her lover. .
(Left to Right) Julie Andrews and Anne Hathaway in 2001’s ‘The Princess Diaries’.
Garry Marshall directed both films, but his death in 2016 meant that much of the forward momentum was taken away from plans for a third film.
Still, rumors would crop up from time to time and this seemed to be the closest to the actual plan for making a threequel.
Debra Martin Chase, who produced the film is returning for the new film, with Melissa Stack, the screenwriter behind the Cameron Diaz comedy ‘The Other Woman’ and the 2020 Disney+ feature ‘Godmothered’, executive producing.
And Disney has Aadrita Mukerji, who has worked on series including ‘Supergirl’, ‘Reacher’ and ‘Quantum Leap’, to pen the scripts.
What the company hasn’t, at least in an official capacity, signed to a deal, is Hathaway, though she’s often been said to be eager to get back into the ‘Diaries’ world – even recently. like last month.
And while Andrews was more likely to pour cold water on the concept, feeling that time may have passed for another film, there’s still a chance he could be convinced by Disney.
With over $300 million in the bank from the first two films and a massive fan base that has already introduced their children to the films, it’s no surprise that Disney wants to keep hope alive.
Anne Hathaway in ‘The Princess Diaries’ in 2001.
