A sequel to How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days has been greenlit at Paramount, with original stars Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey intended to return, according to Variety.
The follow-up arrives 23 years after the original romantic comedy was released, starring Hudson, 47, and McConaughey, 56, as love interests Andie and Benjamin. Variety reported on Monday that development is in the early stages, with a cast and screenwriter yet to be secured. Hudson will serve as a producer on the project.
The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Hudson and McConaughey for comment.
The original film followed Andie, a magazine writer, and Benjamin, an advertising executive, who fall for each other despite Andie's attempts to deter him within 10 days as part of a feature assignment. Unbeknownst to her, Benjamin was also scheming, having placed a bet with co-workers that he could make any woman fall for him in the same time frame.
McConaughey on the film's earnings
The news follows comments McConaughey made to Entertainment Weekly earlier this month, in which he revealed that How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is his most lucrative project.
"I think it's, probably, my favorite rom-com I've done, and a lot of people love that rom-com," he told the outlet.
Despite being released more than two decades ago, the Oscar winner said the film continues to outperform all of his other work in residual payments.
"It still pays the best mailbox money of any film I've ever done. By far. By lengths," he said.
McConaughey also said that in the pre-streaming era, he would receive a large residual check every March, driven by a spike in viewership around Valentine's Day.
"When it used to be just DVDs or cable, every March I'd get a big check because Valentine's Day," he recalled. "But, I mean, look, the movie for me, for that genre, let me just own that genre. How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days... that's a real anchor in the rom-com genre through time."
McConaughey teased a sequel in 2020
McConaughey previously suggested the film was primed for a follow-up. Speaking to E!'s Daily Pop in 2020, he said: "I mean, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is teed up, you know, teed up for one that you could easily do a sequel. And that was a really good one. As far as romantic comedies go, that was a really good one."
Hudson's June hint on Instagram
Hudson hinted at a sequel in June, on the heels of the New York Knicks' NBA Finals win against the San Antonio Spurs.
She shared two movie stills from a scene in which Andie and Benjamin attended a lively Knicks game, decked out in the team's gear. In a caption to her 18.7 million Instagram followers, she wrote "Deja vu," alongside a winking emoji.
What happened in the original film
The rom-com saw Benjamin desperately resisting the urge to dump Andie, even as she got him punched in a movie theater for talking loudly, presented him with a fern plant to represent their love, and bought him a Chinese Crested Dog.
Just as the couple start to let their guards down, Andie learns of Benjamin's bet, and the pair famously trade insults on stage while singing Carly Simon's "You're So Vain." He later chases her across New York after reading her article on how she "lost the only guy I've ever fallen for," before pulling her over on the Manhattan Bridge and professing his love.
Cast, director and box office
The film also starred Kathryn Hahn and Annie Parisse as Andie's friends Michelle and Jeannie, along with Adam Goldberg and Thomas Lennon as Benjamin's friends Tony and Thayer. Donald Petrie directed the movie, which earned $180 million at the box office against a $50 million budget.
