The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is getting a sequel it has been announced.
Fox Searchlight Pictures President of Production Claudia Lewis and Participant Media Executive Vice President of Production Jonathan King confirmed the news and revealed that production has begun in India. The sequel will be written by John Madden from an original screenplay by Ol Parker.
Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Bill Nighy, Dev Patel, Celia Imrie, Ronald Pickup, Penelope Wilton, Diana Hardcastle, Tena Desae and Lillete Dubey will all return. New cast members include Richard Gere, David Strathairn and Tamsin Greig.
“We’re thrilled to reunite our creative and delightful Marigold Hotel family along with some intriguing new ‘guests’,” said Lewis. “With John Madden’s direction and Ol Parker’s original screenplay, we look forward to further exploring our characters’ rich stories and triumphs.”
King added, “We’re delighted to be reteaming with our good friends at Fox Searchlight and the incredibly talented filmmakers for another chapter in this inspirational story. We believe audiences will be as happy as we are to spend more time at The Marigold, as this remarkable cast continues to demonstrate that life can be an adventure at any age.”
The synopsis for the movie is:
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel 2 is the expansionist dream of Sonny (Dev Patel), and it’s making more claims on his time than he has available, considering his imminent marriage to the love of his life, Sunaina (Tena Desae). Sonny has his eye on a promising property now that his first venture, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for the Elderly and Beautiful, has only a single remaining vacancy – posing a rooming predicament for fresh arrivals Guy (Richard Gere) and Lavinia (Tamsin Greig). Evelyn and Douglas (Judi Dench and Bill Nighy) have now joined the Jaipur workforce, and are wondering where their regular dates for Chilla pancakes will lead, while Norman and Carol (Ronald Pickup and Diana Hardcastle) are negotiating the tricky waters of an exclusive relationship, as Madge (Celia Imrie) juggles two eligible and very wealthy suitors. Perhaps the only one who may know the answers is newly installed co-manager of the hotel, Muriel (Maggie Smith), the keeper of everyone’s secrets. As the demands of a traditional Indian wedding threaten to engulf them all, an unexpected way forward presents itself.
A release date for the sequel hasn’t yet been confirmed.
