Ferrera reluctantly wears "Pants" in sequel
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - What a difference a hit TV show makes.
"Ugly Betty" star America Ferrera is in negotiations to reprise her role as Carmen in "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2," a sequel to the 2005 comedy-drama about a group of galpals who bond over a pair of shared jeans.
Multiple sources say Ferrera's return isn't by choice. The actress, whose star turn in the ABC series has catapulted her to cover-girl status, is being forced to the negotiating table by the film's producer Alcon Entertainment, which exercised its sequel option on Ferrera, along with her co-stars, Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel and Blake Lively. Alcon, which has a deal at Warner Bros., is owned by FedEx chairman Fred Smith.
In fact, the actress had been eyeing a starring role in "An Invisible Sign of My Own," a film in development at MGM, sources added. That project is being produced by Ventanazul, MGM's recently launched Latino label run by Salma Hayek, who also is executive producer of "Ugly Betty."
When "Traveling Pants" hit theaters, Ferrera received third billing behind TV starlets Tamblyn ("Joan of Arcadia") and Bledel ("Gilmore Girls"). Now, Warners and Alcon are fast-tracking a sequel based on Ferrera's newfound star power. "Traveling Pants 2" will start shooting in June, coinciding with Ferrera's "Ugly Betty" hiatus.
A similar situation occurred when 20th Century Fox exercised its sequel option on Halle Berry for "X2: X-Men United." Berry was coming off a best actress Oscar win for "Monster's Ball" when she grudgingly returned to the comic book franchise.
Will Ferrell ran up against a similar situation. DreamWorks tried to wrangle the actor to do a sequel to "Old School," hoping to build a story around Ferrell's Frank the Tank character. However, Ferrell nixed that plan.
Music video and TV director Sanaa Hamri will shoot "Traveling Pants 2." The first one was directed by Ken Kwapis, who went on to shoot multiple episodes of "The Office."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
