A ’90s romantic comedy classic that launched the career of one of, arguably, the greatest filmmakers of the past 30 years is getting a remake. Today, Bleecker Street announced they had secured the rights to a new version of Ang Lee’s “The Wedding Banquet,” a 1993 worldwide art-house hit and Foreign Language Oscar nominee in 1994. The new adaptation will reunite director and screenwriter Andrew Ahn and Bowen Yang who previously collaborated on the acclaimed 2022 gay romantic comedy “Fire Island.”
READ MORE: “‘Fire Island” Review: Joel Kim Booster and Andrew Ahn deliver an instant rom-com classic
Beyond the “SNL” mainstay, the film’s cast includes Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Oscar winner Yuh-jung Youn, and Joan Chen.
A new screenplay by Anh and original co-screenwriter James Schamus has updated the original film’s romantic comedy premise. The official synopsis states: “When Min’s boyfriend Chris rejects his spontaneous marriage proposal, he convinces his best friend Angela to marry him instead, paying for her partner Liz’s IVF treatments in exchange for his green card. Their plans for a subtle city hall elopement are turned upside down when Min’s grandmother makes a surprise trip from Seoul to throw them an extravagant Korean wedding banquet.”
Yang portrays Min while Tran plays his “wife” and BFF Angela. Gladstone is on board as Liz while Youn plays Min’s grandmother.
Bleecker Street rarely acquires films before they begin production, so it’s notable news when they do. This is also a project that piqued the interest of numerous mini-majors so it’s a bit of a coup for the New York City-based distributor. Production is expected to begin next month in Vancouver.
In a statement, Lee noted, “It warms my heart to see how my film from so many years ago has inspired a new generation to reimagine a new and different version. I look forward to seeing what Andrew Ahn and his wonderful cast create.”
Andrew Karpen, Founder and CEO of Bleecker Street added, “I’m delighted to re-team with my longtime friend and colleague, James Schamus, on this inspired reimagining of a classic rom-com for the modern era. Andrew Ahn is a force to be reckoned with and I’m very excited to see the new heights that he and James will take this story to.”
Anh is best known for the aforementioned “Fire Island,” but his credits also include “Driveways” and the 2016 Sundance Film Festival breakout “Spa Night.”
Schamus also co-wrote the original 1993 film with Lee and Neil Peng, which was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. The venerable screenwriter won an Oscar in 2017 for his screenplay for “Call Me By Your Name.”
Yang is a three-time Emmy Award nominee for his work on “Saturday Night Live.” His film credits include “The Lost City,” “Bros,” and “Dicks: The Musical.” He’s set to appear in the first “Wicked” film this Thanksgiving.
Gladstone recently starred in “Killers of the Flower Moon” which landed her a 2024 Oscar nomination for Best Actress. Her other credits include “Unknown Country,” “Certain Women,” and “Fancy Dance” which arrives on Apple TV+ on June 28. She can currently be seen in the Hulu limited series “Under the Bridge.”
Tran’s credits include “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” “The Croods: A New Age,” “Raya and the Last Dragon,” and the 2018 dramatic series “Sorry for Your Loss.”
Yuh-jung won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, along with many other accolades, for “Minari.” The legendary Korean actress is also well known to English audiences for her roles in the acclaimed Apple TV+ series “Pachinko” and “Sense 8.”