A lot of Father Of The Bride news broke today, with word that not only is Netflix set to bring the original 1990s cast including Steve Martin and Diane Keaton back together for a reunion special/mini-sequel, but that Warner Bros. has plans for a reboot featuring a new cast.
Let's tackle the Netflix news first, shall we. The streaming service has teamed up with original co-writer Nancy Meyers to gather Martin, Keaton, Kieran Culkin, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, George Newbern and (because no FOTB event would be complete without him), Martin short for what promises to be both a reunion and a mini-sequel featuring, we'd guess, the cast via Zoom or other socially distanced methods. It's all in aid of charity World Central Kitchen and will be hosted on the streaming services YouTube and Facebook channels tomorrow, (Friday 25 September as we write this). We're promised special guests, but mostly it'll just be fun to see Martin and co. having to deal with Short's high-energy wedding planner Franck Eggelhoffer, who is probably a virtual real estate agent or some such thing by now. The trailer is below.
As for Warner Bros.' new film, that's intriguing, since there had been talk of a Disney+ reboot for the concept, since the Mouse House released Bride and its 1995 sequel. Warners, however, maintains the rights to much of MGM's back catalogue, including the 1950 original starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor, which means it can use the idea however it wants.
And right now, the studio (according to Collider) has Bedtime Stories and Race To Witch Mountain writer Matt Lopez workin on a more diverse reboot. And yes, as the providence of the 1950s version proves, there's less to complain about a new reboot when the 1990s films were themselves remakes. Still, Bride without Steve Martin and (particularly) Martin Short? Hhhm....