A Dirty Dancing sequel starring Jennifer Grey has been confirmed, 33 years after the original

Looks like Jennifer Grey is going to have The Time Of Her Life once again! Lionsgate CEO, Jon Feltheimer confirmed rumors of what he calls,“one of the worst kept secrets in Hollywood.” Jennifer Grey is starring and executive producing a new Dirty Dancing movie.

The film, which is rumored to have been in the works for quite some time, is being helmed by Warm Bodies director, Jonathan Levine and Gillian Bohrer. The upcoming sequel’s screenplay is by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis.

The 1887 classic

The first Dirty Dancing film, released in 1887 was made on a $5million budget but went on to earn a whopping $220 million at the box office globally. The beloved classic made huge stars out of Jennifer Grey and the late Patrick Swayze.

Grey, now 60, played the lead role of Baby in the 1987 original film, as a shy and awkward vacationer at a 1950s-era Catskills resort. She is swept away by the rugged and handsome local dance teacher Johnny Castle, played by Patrick Swayze. Tragically, Swayze will not be part of the new film, as he passed away at the age of 57, after a battle with pancreatic cancer in 2009.

Hallmark of pop culture

Dirty Dancing quickly became a hallmark of pop culture. Thanks to Grey and Swayze’s electric chemistry, the Oscar-winning music and, of course, the timeless ‘Dirty Dancing lift’.

The movie went on to win the Academy Award for Best Music, Original song. At the Golden Globes, Dirty Dancing was nominated in the comedy/musical category. It also received nods for Patrick Swayze as comedy/musical actor and as well as Grey in the Best Actress category.

The film’s key song, (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life, won an Oscar as well as a Golden Globe. The climatic scene in which the couple dance to the song, culminating in an impressive lift, became a fixture of pop cultural reference. Dirty Dancing also made history as the first film ever to sell more than a million copies via home video.

Not the first sequel?

Technically, it’s not the first remake or sequel to the iconic 80’s film. Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights starring Diego Luna and Romola Garai was released in 2004. Which served as a sequel, but got a 23% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

In 2017, ABC released a made-for-television remake, a musical re-imagining, starring Abigail Breslin and Nicole Scherzinger.

Grey was asked to make a cameo in the TV remake, but she turned it down. The actress went on to explain why she didn’t take the role. “I was asked to do something on that show and I was flattered because I always want to be asked. Because it’s nice to want to be included. But for me, it would be sacrosanct to do it because it didn’t feel appropriate to me. It feels like if you’re going to do your own thing, do your own thing.” She added, “I wouldn’t say [what the role was] but I will tell you, it wasn’t Baby.”

“The kind of romantic, nostalgic movie that the franchise’s fans have been waiting for”

Lionsgate CEO, Jon Feltheimer has assured fans that the film is in good hands. “It will be exactly the kind of romantic, nostalgic movie that the franchise’s fans have been waiting for. And that has made it the biggest-selling library title in the Company’s history,” said Feltheimer.

Apart from Dirty Dancing and an equally classic comedic role in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off in 1986. Grey has largely worked in smaller roles including on Friends in 1995. Jennifer also recently split from her longtime husband, Clark Gregg after 19 years of marriage.