A ‘Grease’ Spinoff Series Is Headed to HBO Max
The streaming content arms race continues — and so do the revivals of classic movies and shows (or, in this case both).
Per TVLine, the 1978 musical Grease is coming to WarnerMedia’s HBO Max streaming service in an all new form. Grease: Rydell High is a new series “inspired by” the John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John movie, and “will also be set in the 1950s, when ‘the Pink Ladies and the T-Birds still rule the school.” It will reportedly include “some characters you already know, and a whole lot more you will soon meet.” (Since John Travolta looks like this now, we’re assuming if Danny is one of the regulars, the role will be recast.)
The show, like the film (and the Broadway show it was based on) will be a musical:
The musical numbers will include hit songs from the time period along with original compositions, all as it explores ‘the peer pressures of high school, the horrors of puberty and the rollercoaster of life in middle America with a modern sensibility that will bring it to life for today’s musical lovers.’
The other time someone tried to expand the Grease Cinematic Universe, the results were Grease 2, a sequel with a mostly new cast of characters starring a very young Michelle Pfeiffer. It did not connect with audiences the way the first Grease did, but it steadily built a cult fandom, some of whom even prefer it to the original film. That said, I imagine HBO Max is hoping Grease: Rydell High will reach a much wider audience, and much more quickly. The streaming service is expected to launch early in 2020.
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