Rob Lowe Teases “St. Elmo’s Fire” Sequel: “It’s Really Getting Good” After 40 Years
Forty-year waits are great—unless you’re a jar of pickles, in which case you’ve probably gone bad. In the age of reboots and remakes, Rob Lowe is determined to prove that patience in Hollywood can pay off, especially when you start with an ’80s classic about young adults in crisis. Speaking with People Magazine and Entertainment Tonight in recent interviews, Lowe confirmed that the long-teased St. Elmo’s Fire sequel is finally “really getting good,” complete with a script that balances nostalgic banter and midlife malaise.
Lowe, who famously played the slick, disillusioned Billy Hicks in Joel Schumacher’s 1985 ensemble dramedy, is now executive producing alongside original producer Joel Silver. He hinted that the sequel picks up decades later, following the same group of friends who once toasted their shaky futures with shots at a college bar now swapping nightcaps for warm milk. Sure, nothing says “welcome back” like middle-aged twenty-somethings battling existential dread, but Lowe insists the new script packs “heart and humor.”
In his ET interview, Lowe let slip that the characters have evolved—some are married, some are in therapy, and one might even have taken up stand-up comedy, presumably to make sense of their collective life choices. According to Variety, key cast members from the original have signed on, though Lowe coyly declined to name names beyond teasing “all your favorites.” He did reveal that filming is slated to begin early next year, with locations ranging from a nostalgic college town to what he jokingly called “someplace vaguely tropical, because Hollywood.”
Industry insiders tell The Hollywood Reporter that the project has drawn interest from Ava DuVernay and Noah Baumbach, though Lowe stressed that the tone will stay true to Schumacher’s bittersweet vibe—minus the shoulder pads, hopefully. He joked that wardrobe meetings now involve cardio-friendlier options and fewer perms. The script, penned by up-and-coming scribe Jenna Fisher (no relation), got a stamp of approval from the original cast after a round of table reads via Zoom, adding a layer of digital awkwardness that even Billy Hicks would find ironically amusing.
Lowe’s enthusiasm is tempered by a healthy dose of cynicism. “If Hollywood took as long to greenlight other great ideas as it did this one, we’d still be waiting for Better Off Dead 2,” he deadpanned. Still, hearing him say it’s “really getting good” has fans buzzing that the sequel might actually justify four decades of rumors, nostalgia, and questionable hairstyle choices.
There you have it. Hollywood procrastination meets genuine creative spark, all wrapped up in one long-overdue reunion. Tune in next time for more nostalgic comebacks and cinematic second chances—because apparently, nobody ever told these ’80s movies that their time was up.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and People Magazine, Entertainment Tonight, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
