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Bend It Like Beckham 2 is the proposed followup to the hit 2002 British soccer movie, and thanks to teases from director Gurinder Chadha it may actually be happening. Bend It Like Beckham stars Parminder Nagra as Jesminder “Jess” Kaur Bhamra, a young girl with aspiration to become a footballer like her hero David Beckham. She is noticed by Jules (Keira Knightley), and soon starts playing for amateur women’s team the Hounslow Harriers.
Bend It Like Beckham managed to bring in an admirable $76.6 million at the global box office, and has since become a cult hit, recognized as being among the best sports movies of the 00s. Bend It Like Beckham 2 has been discussed in the past though never in any official capacity. However, thanks to inspiration after the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and the success of the England team in the tournament, director Gurinder Chadha may know how to make the Bend It Like Beckham sequel happen.
Most Recent Bend It Like Beckham 2 News
The most recent Bend It Like Beckham 2 news arrived on October 10, 2023. Inspired by the success of the England team at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha was struck with an idea for a sequel to the hit 2002 British soccer movie starring Keira Knightley.
“With all this talk of the World Cup and the popularity of women’s football, in the past I haven’t thought about.” Chadha explained in an interview with Metro, before disclosing why a sequel to Bend It Like Beckham hasn’t materialized before. “I never really wanted to make a sequel to the film because I just thought the way Parminder and Keira played it, and Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Archie Panjabi, I could never really follow that up and create that same magic in the same way.”
Chadha then revealed that, thanks to the popularity of women’s soccer exploding worldwide, a good enough story for Bend It Like Beckham 2 may have presented itself to her. “But with the recent success of football, I just feel like I’m starting to percolate an idea for a possible sequel of some kind.”
Bend It Like Beckham 2 Isn’t Confirmed
Bend It Like Beckham 2 isn’t confirmed. The director and creator of Bend It Like Beckham Gurinder Chadha, teased in 2023 that she has had an idea for a sequel based on the events of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. However, nothing has been confirmed yet officially. Bend It Like Beckham was distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures, which has now been acquired by Disney, so if Chadha does start shopping around a sequel it’s possible the House of Mouse could be interested – though this is still entirely speculation.
Bend It Like Beckham 2 Release Date Prediction
The release date for Bend It Like Beckham 2 is still a long ways off. The movie has yet to be confirmed, and creator Gurinder Chadha possibly hasn’t even settled on a story yet. If the Bend It Like Beckham sequel is made official, however, there’s nothing to stop it arriving 1-2 years from confirmation. The absolute earliest it could arrive is 2025, but this is both speculation and incredibly optimistic until the movie gets the green light.
Bend It Like Beckham 2 Cast
The cast of Bend It Like Beckham 2 hasn’t been set, though it would likely contain one or several stars of the 2002 original. Since Gurinder Chadha has hinted at a story inspired by the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup it’s entirely possible that Jules (Keira Knightly) or Jess (Parminder Nagra) go on to play internationally, or possibly coach a fictional version of the England Women’s Team, making either stars return for the cast possible.
While there’s nothing confirmed yet, possible returning cast members in Bend It Like Beckham 2 could include:
- Parminder Nagra (ER, The Blacklist) as Jess
- Keira Knightley (Pirates of the Caribbean, Atonement) as Jules
- Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors, August Rush) as Joe
Many supporting cast members in the first movie could also return for the Bend It Like Beckham 2 cast, such as Shaheen Khan (Doctor Who, Bhaji on the Beach) as Jess’s mother Mrs. Kaur Bhamra. There would also likely be multiple new cast members added, though until anything is confirmed it’s impossible to predict who these could be.
Bend It Like Beckham 2 Story
Creator and director Gurinder Chadha has hinted that the events of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup inspired her with a possible idea for the Bend It Like Beckham 2 story. This means the Bend It Like Beckham sequel would likely focus on soccer at an international level. It’s possible that Jess or Jules have played for England or are possibly coaching the current team. Until Chadha releases any further details, however, this is entirely speculative.
There’s also the possibility that, given cultural events such as the #MeToo movement that have happened since 2022, the Bend It Like Beckham sequel could return to address Joe and Jess’s relationship. Some elements of their relationship, while consensual, have been seen as problematic thanks to the power dynamic between the two. If Jess and Joe aren’t a couple in the twenty-odd years that will have passed since the events of the first movie, it could be interesting to explore Jonathan Rhy Meyers’s Joe as more of an antagonist-in-hindsight in Bend It Like Beckham 2.
