Potty-mouthed R-rated comedies are back, back, back bitches, so it's no major to surprise to see Sony greenlighting a sequel to its high-school hit** Bad Teacher**. Deadline reports that screenwriter Justin Malen, whose Black List script Bastards was been picked up by Paramount in 2011, is the man crafting the next slab of classroom carnage.
Bad Teacher, a relatively low-budget affair, grossed more than $200m worldwide. With Hollywood still looking to tap into Bridesmaids demographic, only the class duffer could miss the potential for a reprise.
Original star Cameron Diaz deferred most of her fee for the first film in favour of a chunk of the back end, a decision that worked out kinda nicely. Interestingly, the studio hasn't waited for her to commit before giving the go-ahead for this sequel. There's clearly great confidence in Culver City that the formula - gold digger with a casual drug habit and a mouth sweary enough to make Mike Reed blush turns teacher - can be tweaked into another slice of gold.
Sony president Hanna Minghella enthuses that Malen's script "hits all the notes that made the first film such a breakthrough hit and also takes the characters in a new direction that's fresh and fun”. Bad Teacher director Jake Kasdan will be back behind the camera again.