EXCLUSIVE: We have learned tonight that Mindy Kaling and Dan Goor have officially signed on to write MGM’s Legally Blonde 3. This is the second feature film that Kaling and Goor are partnering on, the first being the Kaling/Priyanka Chopra wedding comedy that Universal won in a heated auction last year, which Deadline also told you about first.
Reese Witherspoon remains aboard, reprising her role as attorney Elle Woods, producing through her Hello Sunshine studio with the franchise’s original producer Marc Platt.
Deadline exclusively announced Legally Blonde 3 close to two years, with original scribes Kirsten “Kiwi” Smith and Karen McCullah penning. Kaling and Goor’s version isn’t a makeover, nor are they doing touch-ups, rather their screenplay will have an entirely new fresh spin.
Also producing are Hello Sunshine banner head of Film and Television Lauren Neustadter and Adam Siegel, President of Platt Productions.
Even though many feature productions are closed, the new MGM Film Group headed by Mike De Luca and Pamela Abdy remains very busy in development. Recently, they announced several film projects including Ron Howard’s Thirteen Lives, The Martian author Andy Weir’s next novel (aka Project Hail Mary) with Phil Lord and Chris Miller attached to direct, George Miller’s Three Thousand Years of Longing, David Slade’s Dark Harvest (opening Oct. 24, 2021) and Ridley Scott’s Lady Gaga Gucci project on Nov. 26, 2021.
Kaling recently co-created and is the executive producer on the critically acclaimed Netflix comedy series Never Have I Ever which follows an Indian American teenage girl and is inspired by Kaling’s own childhood. Last summer she co-created and executive produced the Hulu series Four Weddings and a Funeral based on the hit 1990s romantic comedy. Her movie Late Night which she stars in, wrote and produced, made its world premiere at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Amazon for $13M. Kaling counts two SAG ensemble wins and six Emmy noms for NBC’s The Office as EP and star. She also was the EP and star of The Mindy Project on Fox. Kaling is repped by CAA, 3 Arts and Ziffren Brittenham,
Goor is a two-time Emmy winning writer of The Daily Show and Late Night With Conan O’Brien. He is the co-creator of Universal Television’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine and was an EP and writer on NBC’s Parks and Recreation. He is repped by Ziffren Brittenham. Witherspoon is represented by CAA, LBI Entertainment and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman.
Both Legally Blonde pics amassed close to $267M at the WW box office. The first title was a cash cow for MGM made for a reported $18M and earning $141.7M. The movies spawned a 2007 Broadway musical which received seven Tony nominations and ten Drama Desk nominations.