Richard Gere Reveals Why He Hasn’t Made Sequels to His Best Films

Richard Gere has spent about 30 years as one of the most consistently popular actors in romance movies and romantic comedies, and in a movie industry increasingly built on sequels and spinoffs, has managed to steer completely clear of follow-ups to his most notable roles. The star of films like Pretty Woman, An Officer and a Gentleman, and Runaway Bride, Gere has generated a bunch of big hits that  have reshaped the romantic comedy and earned hundreds of millions for studios, but somehow he has managed to avoid making a follow-up to any of them. One could argue that is partly because romantic movies have a pretty obvious endpoint (“happily ever after” and all that), but there are always people clamoring for more.

According to Gere, the reason he hasn’t is as simple as not having seen a sequel script worth doing yet. To his mind, he would not mind doing a sequel if it felt like it was something that could stand on its own and be a good movie that stands shoulder to shoulder with the original.

“It all comes down to the script,” Gere told ComicBook.com, while supporting his new film Maybe I Do. “I suppose if there was a really great script that could stand on its own, it probably wouldn’t bother me to do a sequel. But I, I’ve never seen that. I mean, maybe The Godfather Part II, you know, was as good as [The Godfather]…maybe better, but that’s extremely rare.”

You can see him next in the star-studded Maybe I Do, which hits theaters this week and centers on a young couple who introduce their parents for the first time — but it turns out those parents have been cheating on one another, with each other’s spouses. So hilarity ensues.

Maybe I Do was directed by Michael Jacobs. The film stars Diane Keaton, Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Emma Roberts, Luke Bracey, and William H. Macy. You can read the synopsis below.

In New York City’s splendor, Michelle and Allen’s romance is at the point where it is time for the parents to finally meet. But now face-to-face, the dinner quickly spirals out of control as the parents realize each spouse is sleeping with the other. Trying to hide the affairs from the kids, their antics turn the night into comedic chaos.

Maybe I Do will be in theaters on Friday.