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NEED TO KNOW
A sequel to 2005 holiday comedy The Family Stone is reportedly in the works
The film's writer-director Thomas Bezucha said he'd been working on a follow-up before the news of star Diane Keaton's death on Oct. 11
"I've been missing her for a while already," said the filmmaker, calling the loss of Keaton "a blow on a tender bruise"
The lateDiane Keatonis reportedly getting a sequel to one of her most beloved movies.
Thomas Bezucha, writer and director of the 2005 holiday comedyThe Family Stone, toldCNNin a recent interview that he's working on a follow-up. The Christmas classic starred Keaton as Sybil Stone, matriarch of the titular family, whose breast cancer diagnosis shakes up their reunion.
"I've been haunted by the loss of Sybil for months now while I worked on it, and so this was a blow on a tender bruise already," Bezucha, 61, said. "Mentally, I've been spending time in that house where I've been missing her for a while already."
A perennial holiday favorite,The Family Stonewas distributed by 20th Century Fox. A rep for Disney, which has since acquired that studio, did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
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Keatondiedon Oct. 11 at age 79 after a bacterial pneumonia infection, pera death certificate. "The Keaton family are very grateful for the extraordinary messages of love and support they have received these past few days on behalf of their beloved Diane," read a statement from her family.
The news of the Oscar winner's passing made it all the more important for Bezucha, he told CNN, to do justice to her memorable work inThe Family Stone. With his sequel, he said he wanted to "do a good job by the rest of the cast" and "honor [Keaton] even more."
The movie costarredSarah Jessica Parker,Dermot Mulroney,Luke Wilson,Claire Danes,Rachel McAdams, Elizabeth Reaser, Craig T. Nelson and more. Bezucha indicated he's been toying with a sequel for a while, but would only be interested in completing a script if the original's principal cast was on board. "I'm not interested in the Brady family reunion without the original Jan," he said.
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Per CNN, the original cast gave "unanimously positive responses" to the filmmaker reaching out about a sequel. "No one has officially signed on and the film has not yet been officially greenlit, but cast members have acknowledged the project."
Keaton is survived bytwo children, daughter Dexter and son Duke.
Read the original article onPeople
