Elle Fanning posts hilarious Insta pic from Maleficent II sets: Here's everything we know about the production
Disney's most loved villain is back on the set to shoot the second instalment of Maleficent and we aren't a tad bit surprised.
Angelina Jolie played the dark fairy who cursed Sleeping Beauty to sleep a hundred years after pricking her finger in the spinning wheel.
The movie -- loosely based on 1959's 'Sleeping Beauty' -- released in 2014 not only aced the worldwide haul at the box office but also changed our notion of the villain we were always warned about, and the concept of true love took a full U-turn.
The movie made on a budget of $180 million amassed $758.5 million worldwide, so it was only likely that the hit flick deserved a part two. On Tuesday, Elle Fanning, who plays Princess Aurora aka the Sleeping Beauty, took to Instagram to share a hilarious behind the scenes picture of them on the set.
"It's bring your mom to work day on the #Maleficent2 set!!!!!" the 20-year-old actress captioned the selfie, which features Angelina in her Maleficent get up of horns and red lipstick.
So now that we know cameras are rolling in London to bring part two of our beloved fairytale, let us look at all the things we know about (drum roll...) Maleficent 2.
The cast
The Oscar-winning actress, Angelina Jolie signed up for the role in the first place because of her sheer love for the character. Besides being the fourth-highest grossing film in 2014, the movie was Jolie's highest grossing live-action flick ever. Her role as integral as it is to the movie title, remains an important character to be played exclusively by Jolie.
Soon after the movie was released, Jolie was quick to hint at a possibility of the sequel so fans were certain she would reprise her role. In 2016, it was officially confirmed that she would soon be back as mom Maleficent.
Next up, Elle Fanning is also set to return as Princess Aurora. The Prince, who is, in fact, a sidekick and a misnomer of "true love" will also feature in the second part but the role will be played by Clique's Harris Dickinson, replacing Brenton Thwaites from the original.
A number of new characters will be played by A-list stars including Michelle Pfeiffer, who will soon be appearing in Marvel's Ant-Man and the Wasp. Pfeiffer will be playing the role of Queen Ingris in Maleficent 2. Not much has been revealed about her role but there's a new queen in the Moors.
Another Academy Award nominee, Chiwetel Ejiofor, will be joining the sequel and is rumored to be a potential love interest for Jolie. If that is so, then it is a very important role given that the original was based on Jolie's romantic betrayal and her belief that there is nothing called true love.
There's also a villain in the second part and the role will be played by Ed Skrein, best known for his role as Daario Naharis in the third season of Game of Thrones. Jenn Murray from Fantastic Beasts and Kae Alexander from Ready Player One have also joined the cast. The former Hollyoaks star Fernanda Diniz and David Gyasi are also confirmed new cast members.
Returning for the sequel are Sam Riley as the raven Diaval as well as Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple and Lesley Manville as the Fairy Godmothers. Newcomer Robert Lindsay from Jericho will join the group.
The plot
Disney released an official synopsis of Maleficent 2 and it reads; "A fantasy adventure that picks up several years after Maleficent, in which audiences learned of the events that hardened the heart of Disney's most notorious villain and drove her to curse a baby Princess Aurora, Maleficent II continues to explore the complex relationship between the horned fairy and the soon to be Queen, as they form new alliances and face new adversaries in their struggle to protect the moors and the magical creatures that reside within."
(And before we forget, up they are going with the Roman numeric system to write "II.")
This sounds familiar to the first part where Maleficent fought to protect the Moors and the magical creatures. We also sense the theme of love and loss in the sequel. The first part of Maleficent ended on a happy note where Maleficent grows to love Princess Aurora despite of her father's betrayal. Maleficent lets go of her heartache and grudge and returns to the Moors as the happy queen turns the kingdom into a colorful place.
Princess Aurora is likely reigning the human world and the duo maintains harmony between the world of magic and the humans.
Since Maleficent was all about breaking the stereotypes as it was Maleficent's kiss on Princess Aurora's forehead that broke the spell, not Prince Philip's kiss, this too may break certain stereotypes. We hope.
Release date
There hasn't been any announcement on the official date release of Maleficent 2 but given that the first film was aired in June 2014, it may be possible the second part of the film will also witness an early summer release. But the sad news is: it is not going to be anytime soon. The production of the first part took two years; so if the shooting for part two just started then we might have to wait till the summer of 2020 to see Jolie and Elle back in the live fairytale action.
Till then we will be looking up to Elle Fanning's social media posts. Who knows what spoilers we may get.
Maleficent 2 crew
Guess who is directing Maleficent 2? Joachim Ronning, best known for directing 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,' has secured the big chair and has headed straight for the project since October 2017. It has been reported that he will be shooting a script written by Maleficent scribe Linda Woolverton, edited and polished by Spectre co-writer Jez Butterworth.
The look for Maleficent 2 is getting designed by Patrick Tatopoulos, a veteran production designer known for his works in Independence Day, I, Robot, Justice League.