Michelle Pfeiffer truly had some iconic roles in the ‘80s like her breakout part in Martin Scorsese’s Scarface, Ladyhawke, and The Witches of Eastwick. However, one movie of her's that is still hotly debated is Grease 2, which has now become a cult classic. Grease 2 has faced its fair share of criticism, and to this day it's debated, and now the Golden Globe winner is defending one of her first leading roles.
Grease, which is considered one of the best movies of the ‘70s, had a sequel that took place two years after the events of the first movie. With a brand-new cast in the lead roles, Michelle Pfeiffer filled in the female lead role of Stephanie, Rydell High’s newest leader of the Pink Ladies, who ignores the swooning attempts of the clean-cut Michael until he disguises himself as the “cool rider” Stephanie wants. Despite this sequel not getting the best reception when it came out, it’s clearly a movie that still holds deep meaning for fans and the Scarface actress who took to Instagram to defend Grease 2 after one article’s inaccuracy. Take a look at the Instagram story below:
After a Buzzfeed article took a quote from Hollywood.com about Michelle Pfeiffer saying she “hated [Grease 2] with a vengeance,” the actress was quick to address the quote, and defend her movie. She posted on her Instagram story a snapshot of the Buzzfeed article with her own caption over the story saying, “This project is and has always been special to me and my history,” and added that people should not trust the quotes of an article that didn’t spell her last name right. Plus, that quote was from 2007, so either Pfeiffer didn’t remember saying that about the poorly-received sequel, she feels differently about the movie now, or she didn't say those words at all.
One of Michelle Pfeiffer’s first big movies may not have been the best film she starred in, but it doesn’t mean playing Stephanie didn’t mean anything to her. For someone who was an unknown actress at the time, she was very lucky to have gotten the lead role in a highly anticipated sequel. However, Grease 2 only came in fifth during the musical film's opening weekend with negative reviews about this sequel just recycling ideas from the original film with forgettable songs. Following the sequel's release, Pfeiffer went on to star in one of the best gangster films, Scarface, which helped her make a new name for herself in the film industry, and to this day the Grease sequel has a passionate following.
I’m sure Michelle Pfeiffer is very grateful that Grease 2 didn’t become a career-ender for her. You could argue that the Hairspray actress’s part in the movie is what has made the sequel so memorable to begin with. The same wasn’t said for her co-star, Maxwell Caulfield, who became more well-known in stage circuits than anywhere else after Grease 2. Pfeiffer’s film career flourished in the decades that followed, and isn’t stopping anytime soon as she killed it in Ant-Man 3 reprising her role as Janet van Dyne and is set to co-star with Annette Bening in the psychological thriller Turn of Mind.
While Grease 2 may not have been the most enjoyable film to watch for some, we should still thank this sequel for putting Michelle Pfeiffer on the map. It’s nice to see this Oscar-nominated actress defend her first big movie that gave her a chance in Hollywood. You can watch Grease 2, and see how the Grease legacy lives on with the series Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies with a Paramount+ subscription.
