S Poddar
The 1999 romantic comedy Notting Hill, starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, almost had a sequel-but the idea was halted in its tracks for an unexpected reason. Richard Curtis, the writer behind the iconic film, recently shared the backstory that led to Julia Roberts rejecting the concept.
Speaking with IndieWire, Curtis explained if he ever considered doing sequels to his previous works. He said that he actually considered a sequel for Notting Hill but the storyline was not okay with Roberts.
“I tried doing one with Notting Hill where they were going to get divorced, and Julia [Roberts] thought that was a very poor idea,” Curtis explained.
The movie would have seen the central couple of the film, Hollywood actress Anna Scott and bookshop owner William Thacker, go through the challenges of a turbulent divorce. Roberts did not agree to the dark direction the beloved characters were being taken and dismissed the concept altogether.
Unlike Roberts, her co-star Hugh Grant seemed slightly more receptive. In an interview conducted by HBO with their official Twitter account, in 2020, Grant teased the possibility of a second installment centered around Anna and William’s union.
He suggested a storyline that would explore “the hideous divorce that’s ensued,” complete with emotional turmoil. According to Grant, the sequel would include “children involved in tug of love, floods of tears, [and being] psychologically scarred forever.”
“I’d love to do that film,” the actor quipped, showing his enthusiasm for revisiting the characters, albeit in a less-than-rosy scenario.
The original Notting Hill captivated audiences with its heartwarming story of two unlikely lovers navigating the challenges of fame, class differences, and the complications of modern romance. Roberts played the glamorous yet relatable Anna Scott, while Grant charmed viewers as the affable bookshop owner William Thacker.
Their chemistry, combined with Curtis’s clever script, made the movie a blockbuster, and people and critics alike raved about it. A few might have been tempted by the idea of reliving those characters in a dramatically different context, but it is quite evident that Roberts felt very strongly that the premise of the sequel did not do justice to the legacy of the original.
Although Notting Hill is a movie of its own, the very chance of the sequel, although minute, always raises fans’ interest in it. Both Roberts and Grant have been talking against it, which has left the story of Anna and William frozen in their classic original.
While some fans will wonder what could have been, Roberts’ decision speaks for her commitment to preserving the magic of a story that made millions feel it. And while Curtis and Grant are receptive to new narrative directions, there is always the reminder of some creative risks often considered in film-making.
At the end, Notting Hill is still a classic romantic comedy that is loved and appreciated because of its humor and those touching moments, its own charm, and endurance. As for whether or not there ever could have been a viable sequel, that’s one that might be debated, but here is the thing: what actually is in the original.
