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Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick will return to our screens once more for the Paul Feig-directed sequel of the 2018 dark comedy A Simple Favour.
Based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Darcey Bell, the original stylish, post-modern thriller told the tale of an enigmatic, high-powered businesswoman, named Emily Nelson (Lively) who after asking mummy blogger Stephanie Smothers (Kendrick) to pick up her son from school, stages her own disappearance. A Simple Favour 2 will reportedly see Stephanie travel to Capri for Emily’s wedding to a wealthy Italian businessman. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the plot will also include murder and betrayal.
Production will begin in the American spring. The original film earned US$97 million (AU$149 million) at the international box office off of a US$20 million budget.
We’re very excited about Lively’s press tour wardrobe because, if you can’t your mind back six years, you may remember the actress hopping about a sweltering Manhattan in three-piece suits. Six in six days to be exact, and as the subway was quite literally melting. Lively even turned up the sass when a fan dared to question her style.
Inspired by the likes of Saint Laurent and sourced from the archival vaults of Ralph Lauren, the film’s costume designer Renee Ehrlich told GRAZIA that it was initially Lively’s idea to style her character in sharp tailoring.
“It’s funny when I first started working with Blake, she said to me, ‘I really want to wear men’s suits,” she says. “Our director, Paul Fieg, wore tailored suits to work every single day with a walking stick. And I said to Blake, ‘You know, if you want to wear this, we’re going to have to fight for this. You should look like Paul and [with him on set] we’ll always have a read on this’. And she turned around, smiled and said, ‘I think it could be iconic’.”
Henry Golding who starred in the first film will also return to the sequel. Six years ago he spoke to GRAZIA about meeting Lively for the first time on the A Simple Favour set.
“Blake is one of the most amazing women that I’ve had to joy to meet,” he says. “She is a fantastic mother, she’s a dedicated mother at that, and her and Ryan have brought their kids up in this crazy industry and they are just joyful.
“When I first met Blake—of course I’d watched her stuff on Gossip Girl and countless movies—I had some butterflies. I remember we were travelling to set and she was like, ‘Just jump in my car, we’ll have a little chat and we’ll catch up and read through the lines.’ It was just like we had known each other for years. It’s that comfort and familiarity that Blake gives everybody. You could be a stranger and Blake sets you at ease. There’s that joy in meeting her.”
