Mamma Mia! Producer Has Promising Update on Third Film

By Liam Crowley

The Mamma Mia! franchise is alive and thriving. One full decade after the big screen adaptation of the hit Broadway musical was in theaters, a new collection of ABBA songs were woven together for 2018's Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Based on the receipts, Mamma Mia! did not miss a beat, as the $402 million haul combined with 2008's $611 million gross was enough to skyrocket the franchise into billion dollar territory. Two years after Here We Go Again concluded its theatrical run, producer Judy Craymer confirmed that a third installment was in development.

Now five years removed from Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Craymer reiterated that Mamma Mia! 3 remains in the beginning days of development but emphasized that there is room to continue the story.

"It's in its earliest stages," Craymer told Deadline. "I don't want to over-egg it, but I know there's a trilogy there."

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again explored the origins of Donna's three love affairs in 1979, with Lily James portraying the younger version of Meryl Streep's character. The present day revealed that Donna had passed away and Amanda Seyfried's Sophie was making preparations for her late mother's funeral. Streep was able to reprise her role via a couple of dream sequences as well as the ensemble-filled end credits.

There is no word on how Donna could be written into a Mamma Mia! 3, but Craymer is all for finding a way to crown Streep as the dancing queen for a third time.

"There is a story there, and I do think Meryl should come back," Craymer continued. "And if the script is right, she would, I think, because she really loved playing Donna."

Earlier this year, Seyfried noted that she is in the dark on Mamma Mia! 3's development but is ready and waiting.

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"I have absolutely no power, but we are waiting for the call," Seyfried said. "There are enough ABBA songs, Judy Craymer is 100% on board. I don't know what the Universal people are doing."

ABBA released their final studio album, Voyage, in November 2021. While the Swedish pop group has no shortage of unused songs in their catalog for a third Mamma Mia! movie, this new ten track collection could find its way to the big screen if Craymer and company utilize it for the threequel.

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