Anne Hathaway 'pushed really hard’ for Julie Andrews to return in ‘Princess Diaries 3’
Anne Hathaway is still holding out hope that Julie Andrews could return for The Princess Diaries 3, revealing that they pushed "really hard” to get the actress back as Queen Clarisse Renaldi.
Hathaway, who will be reprising her role as Mia Thermopolis, said that while they would welcome Andrews’ return, they also understand her decision.
“First of all, I just want to say if she has a change of heart, we’re down,” Hathaway told Entertainment Tonight at D23.
She added that, despite their efforts to bring Andrews back, they want to respect her wishes.
“But we also want to be respectful. For goodness sakes, if anybody has contributed to the world of entertainment and to our collective joy, it’s her. Whatever she wants, we completely understand. We did push really hard to see if she would want to do it," Hathaway said.
“I just want it to be fun. The women who were six when the first one came out—a lot of whom are now mothers themselves, maybe even with six-year-olds—I want them to feel like they’re bringing their children to something that mattered to them,” she continued.
Andrews previously explained why she would not be returning to the upcoming installment, saying she didn't think she would be needed and that the plot should focus on Mia.
“I think the absolute truth is that I think I’m really past all that now,” the 90-yea-old actress said. “I’m not completely retired, but it’s a different kind of work that I do these days—[writing] books, and I do a lot of recording of podcasts and voiceovers. But truly, I don’t think I should be a part of it," she continued.
“I think the story has to continue in Princess Mia,” she added.
The Princess Diaries films follow teenager Mia Thermopolis as she discovers that she is the heir to the throne of the fictional kingdom of Genovia. Her grandmother, Queen Clarisse, teaches Mia how to navigate life as a princess while helping her grow into her new role. In the second film, Mia prepares to take the throne and become Queen of Genovia.
The third film in the series was officially confirmed to be in development in 2022, nearly two decades after the release of the original and its 2004 sequel. Hathaway teased that the story movie is finally "moving in the right direction."
"The script that we were working on—we kind of had to start over with this new direction, which is not the update I think anybody wants, but we all feel really good that this is gonna be the one,” she said.
Adele Lim is directing the film. She teased that fans can "look forward to a lot of fun returns."
"We’re going to be able to shoot in Europe and really show the audience Genovia in its full glory," she said.
