Lisa Kudrow (left) and Mira Sorvino in 1997’s ‘Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion’.Photo:Touchstone/Kobal/Shutterstock
Touchstone/Kobal/Shutterstock
As it turns out,Romy and Michele’s High School Reunionalmost didn’t happen.
During the Jan. 7 episode ofThe Drew Barrymore Show, starLisa Kudrow, 61, revealed the origins of the beloved dimwitted characters when host (and fangirl)Drew Barrymoregushed about the 1997 cult classic.
Kudrow played the titular Michele in the film, opposite Mira Sorvino’s Romy. In their chat, Barrymore, 49, asked Kudrow how the movie came to be.
“One of my favorite films, I think of it so much more than a film,” Barrymore said during the segment. “It’s a world and I tend to live in it on a daily basis and I certainly quote it every day of my life."
“What?” asked Kudrow.
“Romy and Michele!” Barrymore enthusiastically exclaimed. “Is it true, and maybe I’m off base about this, but, okay, you’re gonna be the person that knows. It wasn’t a movie at first?”
“So they had to do a backers audition for the play to see if they could even mount the play,” Kudrow recalled. “And they went to all the [acting] teachers, ‘Who do you recommend to audition?’, so you know, I went.”
She continued: “That was my first audition, ever, for ‘Airhead No. 2,’ Michele. We were these minor characters. We were on stage a total of seven minutes, in and out, for the whole play.”
“It was a pilot,” said Kudrow. “We were in the pilot, this actress Christie Mellor and I, Romy and Michele. And it was a pilot and it wasn’t very good.”
Barrymore then shared a story of how she got to work on a project over the summer withRomy and Michele’sother big star, Sorvino, who was also questioned about another project diehard fans want to know about: theRomy and Michelesequel.
Lisa Kudrow and Mira Sorvino at the 2022 SAG Awards.Rich Fury/Getty
“The whole time, I kept asking her, ‘So what’s happening withRomy and Micheleand the second film and the sequel?' ” Barrymore shared with Kudrow. “We’ve talked about it here on the news, every little tidbit or morsel we get. We scream from the rooftops. There’s nothing I could ever imagine I would want more. How’s it going?”
“Oh my God, I just got chills, I really did,” said Barrymore.
“So it’ll happen, I mean, we’ll see,” teased Kudrow.
During an exclusive November 2024 interview with PEOPLE,Sorvino, 57, also opened up about the forthcomingRomy and Michelesequel, teasing that the project is “so close to being greenlit,” and revealing that a director has even been hired.
Lisa Kudrow tells Drew Barrymore about the origins of ‘Romy and Michele’.The Drew Barrymore Show/Youtube
The Drew Barrymore Show/Youtube
“They’ve done his deal, they’ve doneLisa [Kudrow]and my deals as executive producers,” Sorvino told PEOPLE. “Robin has written multiple drafts of an amazing funny script, which checks all the boxes for all the fans.”
“And they’re just going back and forth, tweaking things here and there, and [there are] rumors of shooting it second quarter next year,” she added, confirming that she and Kudrow would also reprise their roles.
“But,” Sorvino continued, “It’s not officially greenlit, so I can’t say that it’s officially greenlit.”
source: people.com
