Blake Lively, Anna Kendrick and Henry Golding all reprised their roles for Another Simple Favour, but the sequel is missing one major name.
Jean Smart played the role of Emily's mother Margaret McLanden in A Simple Favour, which proved to be a pivotal one.
It was Margaret who revealed Emily's dark past as Hope, which included Hope and her twin Faith setting fire to their childhood home and killing their abusive father before disappearing from each other's lives.
Margaret makes a comeback in Another Simple Favour as an unexpected guest, alongside Emily's aunt Linda (Allison Janney), at Emily's wedding to Italian gangster Dante Versano (Michele Morrone) in Capri.
It's not Jean Smart playing Margaret though, but Elizabeth Perkins who you might recognise from the likes of Weeds, This Is Us, Big and The Flintstones.
So why didn't Jean Smart return for Another Simple Favour? The answer is obvious when you hear it.
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Related: How to watch Another Simple Favour for free on Prime Video
"In the original, Blake's mum was played by Jean Smart, and you can't replace her. She's the queen of the universe, and the only reason she wasn't doing it was because she was shooting Hacks," Perkins revealed to Woman's World.
"I didn't feel alone coming into the sequel, because Allison Janney and I are sort of a two-hander in this one. We've known each other for a long time, and we're good friends. She actually had a small part in the Miracle on 34th Street remake I was in in 1994, but we weren't onscreen together.
"When I got the call for Another Simple Favour, it was like, 'Do you want to come to Rome and shoot a movie with all these amazing people?' I've known Paul Feig for 30 years, and when somebody calls you and asks you that, of course you say yes. It was a no-brainer."
Another Simple Favour doesn't completely ignore the recast either as when Margaret arrives at the wedding, somebody comments on how she looks different and she replies: "I had work done."
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While Hacks season three finished filming in January 2024 (via The Hollywood Reporter), Another Simple Favour was originally set to start filming in late 2023 before being delayed by the Hollywood strikes.
It's possible that was the potential clash which meant Smart couldn't reprise her role as Margaret in Another Simple Favour.
But since she went on to win another Emmy for Hacks season three, as well as a Golden Globe, it seems like a fair compromise.
Another Simple Favour is now available to watch on Prime Video, as well as A Simple Favour.
Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
