(Left) Jennifer Aniston in ‘The Morning Show,’ premiering September 13, 2023 on Apple TV+. (Right) Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton and Jane Fonda in ‘Nine to Five.’ Photo: 20th Century Fox.
Preview:
- Jennifer Aniston will produce the remake of ‘9 to 5’.
- The original starred Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton.
- Diablo Cody is writing the script for the new version.
Jennifer Aniston has been working more on the small screen than the big one of late, between her Netflix output and her Apple TV+ series ‘The Morning Show’.
But she’s stayed active behind the scenes on movies via her Echo Films company, and has now found something that could be big, if it works to the level of its inspiration.
According to reporter Jeff Sneider, Aniston will produce the re-imagining of classic workplace feminism comedy ‘9 to 5’.
What’s the story of ‘9 to 5’?
(L to R) Lily Tomlin Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton in ‘Nine to Five.’ Photo: 20th Century Fox.
The 1980 original, directed by Colin Higgins from a script he wrote with Patricia Resnick, starred Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton three female office employees who turn the tables on their sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot boss played by Dabney Coleman.
It was a massive hit in its day, earning more than $103 million at the box office. Parton contributed the iconic theme song, which was nominated for an Original Song Oscar, went platinum and was also nominated for four Grammy Award nominations, winning Best Country Song and Best Country Vocal Performance.
In terms of spin-offs, it inspired a sitcom (starring Rita Moreno), ‘Nine to Five’ that ran for five seasons in the 1980s, while a 2008 Broadway musical (with music and lyrics by Parton), earned four Tony nominations.
More recently, a documentary released in 2022, ‘Still Working 9 to 5’ looked at the movie’s continuing cultural impact.
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‘9 to 5’: What has happened with the remake so far?
(L to R) Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton and Jane Fonda in ‘Nine to Five.’ Photo: 20th Century Fox.
Even before the latest remake chatter gathered pace, there was talk of a sequel with original co-writer Patricia scripting and Rashida Jones starring.
Yet talk of a remake has also circulated for years, with Lily Tomlin as one of driving forces.
Here’s what she told Indiewire about it:
“I have a big hope! More than Jane. Jane’s gone on to climate change, and she’s very involved in it and rightly so. I would like any material that’s just really rich and true and not dishonest and somehow its intention is communicating something better to humanity. I’m interested in any human issue, any human condition, anything about humanity that’s positive or says something meaningful about how we’re living or what we’re doing to each other, any number of things like that. But we like to get the comedy in there.”
Right now, ‘Juno’, ‘Jennifer’s Body’ and ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ writer Diablo Cody is involved in the script.
So, why is Jennifer Aniston looking to produce the remake?
Jennifer Aniston in ‘Rumor Has It.’ Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
While it certainly sounds like something Aniston would be interested in regardless –– her company has, after all, been involved in projects such as ‘The Morning Show’, which also tackled attitudes towards women in the workplace.
A closer connection might be Netflix movie ‘Dumplin’, which also saw her starring and producing, and had a soundtrack featuring songs by Parton.
When will the new take on ‘9 to 5’ arrive in theaters?
With the movie still at such an early stage, there is no information about a release date yet, and 20th Century Studios has yet to announce anything.
Jennifer Aniston in ‘Rumor Has It.’ Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.