'Grease' Prequel Set To Begin Production As New Director Is Hired

The Grease Prequel movie is closer to reality now that a new director is on board.

Officially titled Summer Lovin', the prequel will be directed by Brett Haley. Haley has already established his name in the indie movie industry, and this will be his first big shot for a major studio film. His portfolio includes 'I'll See You in My Dreams', 'The Hero', 'Hearts Beat Loud', and 'All The Bright Places'.

The original Grease movie released in 1978 and starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. It was based on the 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey and is now considered an all-time classic favorite. 

In 2016, a live TV musical version of Grease called Grease: Live was released starring Julianne Hough, Vanessa Hudgens, Aaron Tveit, and Keke Palmer. The musical version was a huge success, and it received a staggering 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. On top of it all, the three-hour-long musical version bagged five Emmys.

The massive success of the 2016 TV musical version inspired the creation of the upcoming prequel, Summer Lovin'.

The prequel will focus on the events of the summer before Danny and Sandy met up in the same school.

In the original movie, John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, who played Danny and Sandy in the 1978 film, met on the beach. However, most of the scenes in the movie revolved around the high school where Sandy and Danny ultimately fall in love. 

Now that a director is finally attached to the project, we can expect to hear casting updates soon. Grease has been such an iconic film. It managed to stand the test of time and remains highly relevant in pop culture. Whoever gets the major roles surely has big shoes to fill.

As of the moment, the film's schedule remains unknown. Just like most films, there's a possibility that the production team wouldn't even be able to start filming until next year due to the current Coronavirus pandemic. There is still also no expected release date yet.

On the other hand, the news of the prequel did not receive a warm welcome as expected.

A couple of people have already expressed their disapproval through social media.

 "Who asked for a grease prequel," one person tweeted. 

While another one said: "Why are we getting a Grease prequel before an American Idiot movie? NO ONE ASKED FOR THIS"

Whatever the critics say, Summer Lovin' continues to move forward. The critic's initial reaction is a great challenge for Haley. This is such a big pressure for someone who has just landed his first major studio film. But with his excellent work at the comedy-drama musical film, Hearts Beat Loud, we're confident Haley could pull Summer Lovin off!