Yahoo Movies Everything we know about Freakier Friday
Another body-swap comedy is coming to cinemas
Freakier Friday — a sequel to Disney’s body swap classic Freaky Friday — is on the way, with stars Lindsay Lohan and Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis returning.
Originally based on author Mary Rodgers’ 1972 book of the same name, Freaky Friday has made its way to screens on a number of occasions, from made-for-TV specials to fully-fledged feature films.
It’s the latter that’s perhaps the best known, with Lohan and Curtis bringing the story to modern audiences back in 2003 under the directorial gaze of filmmaker Mark Waters.
Not only was the film a critical success but it has since become a nostalgic kids’ favourite among fans who grew up watching Curtis and Lohan’s mother-daughter-duo swap bodies and live each other’s lives.
With times gone by emerging as the pop culture’s fuel of the day, rumours of a Freaky Friday sequel have done the rounds for a number of years — but now it's actually happening.
Here’s everything we know about Freakier Friday AKA Freaky Friday 2 so far…
When will Freakier Friday be released?
Freakier Friday will be released in cinemas in 2025, Disney has confirmed. The film should later be available to stream on Disney+. Production began in Los Angeles in June 2024.
The movie's official title was revealed in August 2024 during Disney's D23 celebration, with Lohan and Curtis taking to the event’s stage in Anaheim.
“Things just got freakier. #FreakierFriday, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, is coming to cinemas in 2025,” said the caption accompanying the title reveal.
Is there a trailer for Freakier Friday?
With Freakier Friday still filming, a trailer is not currently available.
Who will appear in Freakier Friday?
Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan will reprise their roles as mother and daughter Tess and Anna Coleman. Other returning cast members from the 2003 original include Mark Harmon, Chad Michael Murray, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Haley Hudson, Lucille Soong, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Rosalind Chao.
New additions to the cast announced so far are Julia Butters, Sophia Hammons, Manny Jacinto, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. Meanwhile, Canadian filmmaker Nisha Ganatra will direct the film.
Speaking to Nightline about stepping onto set to film the sequel, Lohan said the experience has made her feel like a kid again.
“I think really for me was when I went onto the Disney lot. And being back on the Disney lot because that’s not just Freaky Friday for me. That’s The Parent Trap, that’s Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, that’s Herbie. It’s so many moments for me. So when I got there, I kind of felt like this essence of a little kid again," said the star.
“I’m so grateful for every moment of it. Every second… I’m going to, like, get emotional. It’s a great experience.”
What happened in Freaky Friday?
The success of both Rodgers’ original story and Disney’s 2003 movie could perhaps be pinned down to the simplicity and relatability of its fantastical plot.
Freaky Friday follows Anna Coleman (Lohan), a frustrated teenager and aspiring musician who lives with her soon-to-be-remarried therapist mum Tess (Curtis).
As if battling high-school dramas like grades and frenemies wasn’t bad enough, Anna is struggling to come to terms with her mother’s new relationship with Ryan (Mark Harmon) following the recent death of her father. Meanwhile, the rules and regulations of her overbearing mum Tess aren’t making things any easier.
Things soon come to a head and a heated argument ensues but when both read from a fortune cookie something strange happens - Anna and Tess trade bodies and get a taste of how the other half lives.
What follows is a series of fish-out-of-water scenarios, with both mum and daughter getting an unusual and eye-opening opportunity to see the world from the other’s perspective.
What is the plot of Freakier Friday?
As the official synopsis for Freakier Friday explains: "the film picks up years after Tess (Curtis) and Anna (Lohan) endured an identity crisis. Anna now has a daughter of her own and a soon-to-be stepdaughter. As they navigate the myriad challenges that come when two families merge, Tess and Anna discover that lightning might indeed strike twice."
How long has Freakier Friday been in the works?
Freaky Friday 2 can be traced all the way back to 2016 when Disney initially revealed that plans for a sequel were starting to kick into gear. A few years later in 2002, Curtis threw further fuel on the fire by welcoming the concept and saying she would be “wide open” to reuniting with her on-screen daughter Lohan.
“I’ve already written to Disney... creatively I am wide open,” she told the hosts of The View while promoting 2022’s Halloween Ends, as per Deadline.
She even pitched her own idea as to what Freaky Friday’s story could be: “Let me be the grandma, let me be the old grandma who switches places, so then Lindsay gets to be the sexy grandma who’s still happy with Mark Harmon in all the ways you would be happy with Mark Harmon.“
Later that same year, Lohan confirmed that she had spoken to Curtis about the idea, telling host Jimmy Fallon that ”we’d both be into it” during a visit to The Tonight Show.
Freakier Friday will be released in 2025. Freaky Friday is streaming on Disney+.
