Stars Whoopi Goldberg and Jenifer Lewis discuss their long-awaited return in Sister Act 3. With Sister Act 2 coming out in 1993, it's been almost 30 years since the last installment, with Goldberg initially denying the possibility of a third film. This changed in 2020, when she announced her return to the franchise despite the film still not having a release date or production block.
Sister Act follows Goldberg's Delores, a lounge singer who's placed in a convent after witnessing a murder, where she forms a choir with her fellow nuns. Details are sparse on the story of Sister Act 3, but the screenplay is currently in development for an exclusive release on Disney+, with the help of producer Tyler Perry. It's unknown why the film's production is so gradual, given the cult status of the films and the success of the musical adaptation, which premiered on Broadway in 2011.
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While guest starring on The View, Lewis and co-host Goldberg talk about how they're ready to make Sister Act 3 whenever it happens. Goldberg mentions how she wants to work with Lewis again after enjoying her company so much in the first two films. Lewis then goes on to say how she inspired Goldberg to use her own voice for the original movie. Read their quotes below:
Goldberg: You know we’re still going to do that movie. And I’d do everything I can to work with her because she’s fun.
Lewis: [I'm] so ready. [In the original], they were going to use my voice and I told Whoopi, ‘Look, you just get in this mirror with the two of us, and you just get a hairbrush and pretend that we’re 15 years old singing Gladys Knight and the Pips,’ and Whoopi did it, she sang her little booty off.
With Sister Act 3 set three decades after the last film, it begs the question of how the new movie can recapture the magic of the first two films without relying on nostalgia too heavily. Goldberg and Lewis are clearly enthusiastic about the project, but passion isn't enough to make a movie work. However, there's still a long time to figure out the fine details, with the movie's production happening at a slow pace.
The first two Sister Act movies were two of the defining box-office hits of the early 1990s, and though critical reception wasn't stellar, the audience response led to their cult following that endures to this day. With nostalgia being one of the biggest money generators of the current industry, the Sister Act 3 movie will have its work cut out for it to stand out from the crowd and recapture the franchise's earlier acclaim. However, with the correct vision and balance, as well as some reliably solid performances from Goldberg and Lewis, Sister Act 3 just might be able to achieve those lofty goals.