There were “immediate” conversations of a sequel to Fire Island following the release of the gaycation comedy last year, Matt Rogers has revealed.
Written by and starring Joel Kim Booster, the Pride and Prejudice-inspired film follows a group of gay friends who embark on their annual weeklong vacation to the titular hotspot.
Also starring Bowen Yang, Conrad Ricamora, Margaret Cho, James Scully, Torian Miller, Tomás Matos, Nick Adams and Zane Phillips, Fire Island was hailed as an instant queer classic.
Fans and critics praised the Andrew Ahn-directed comedy for centring the queer Asian-American experience and for exploring issues such as body image, wealth and race, as well as its celebration of LGBTQ+ culture.
As the Lydia Bennett-based Luke, Rogers memorably went viral for his scene with Keegan (Matos) in which the breakout duo pay homage to Marisa Tomei and her Oscar-winning role in My Cousin Vinny.
Speaking with GAY TIMES, Rogers said “there was some talk” about the sequel taking place in Provincetown and focusing on the nuptials of Yang and Scully’s characters, Howie and Charlie, where they would “run into the characters that were from the first movie”.
“It would be a really interesting continuation,” explained Rogers. “The truth is, you do pull away from the dock, watch them dance and you do wanna know what’s next. That is, I think, a compliment to the ensemble and the wonderful script. You do fall in love with the characters by the end. More than just the characters, their group dynamic was worth following.”
The cast would “all be excited” to return for a sequel, said the Have You Heard of Christmas? star, “but only if everyone could be there. And only if it felt like the script was saying something just as important and fun and that we could all feel really good about doing.”
Rogers also revealed that Marisa Tomei has finally seen the aforementioned tribute, saying he has heard from a “reliable source” that she “thought it was really funny and that she wants to meet me and Tomas”.
Although Rogers believes Fire Island works “fine as a standalone movie”, he said it would be “iconic” if Tomei and Cho’s character, Erin, “were in a lesbian relationship in Provincetown, Fire Island 2.” Here! For! It!
In his GAY TIMES cover interview, Booster said a sequel – or spiritual sequel – set in another popular gay destination with the original cast is a possibility.
“Yeah, a real anthology series!” he teased. “While I don’t know that I necessarily feel all the way inspired to write another gay vacation movie at this time, I would definitely do anything to work with this cast again.
“Maybe what will happen is I’ll do an And Just Like That… sort of style film in 20 years from now. We’ll all return to Fire Island and we’ll see where these characters are in 20 years.”
Fire Island is available to stream in the UK on Disney Plus.
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