Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan Talk ‘Freaky Friday’ at 20

It has been 20 years since Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, taking part in a mom and daughter endlessly at odds, magically swapped our bodies in Disney’s “Freaky Friday,” the Mark Waters remake of the 1976 comedy. Before restoring stability, the 2 are compelled to see the world by way of one another’s eyes as they get caught up in wedding ceremony prep and highschool drama. This model left an impression on a technology of millennials who grew up on a gentle weight loss plan of Lohan movies, considering bleached hair streaks and chipped nail polish.

Now Curtis’s two kids are fortunately married and Lohan is pregnant along with her first, however the actors have remained in contact. On separate calls — Curtis from Los Angeles and Lohan from Dubai — they mentioned the transformative expertise of “Freaky Friday” and what it could imply to revisit their characters in the present day. Which isn’t far-fetched: Disney confirmed {that a} sequel was in improvement, with Elyse Hollander writing the screenplay, and Curtis and Lohan in talks to return.

These are edited excerpts from our interviews.

Jamie, on the heels of your Oscar win for “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” what’s been memorable about revisiting this function?

JAMIE LEE CURTIS I’ve been in style films for a very long time, however the one time in my life the place somebody talked about an Oscar was within the New York Times overview of “Freaky Friday.” For a woman who was in horror films and physique comedies, it was surprising. Now, all these years later, the thin gold particular person lives in my home.

LINDSAY LOHAN When you get to work with such nice actors, it actually impacts your efficiency. You instantly play higher off one another.

Let’s return to 2003. What did this film imply at that time in your profession?

LOHAN As an 11-year-old, “The Parent Trap” [1998] felt so huge to me. I threw myself into every part: accents, inexperienced screens, taking part in two individuals. So I felt comfy after that. “Freaky Friday” felt totally different as a result of I used to be going by way of the entire phases of a 16-year-old [but playing a character who was a year younger]. This was the period of Avril Lavigne and punk, and I needed to expertise it. We did white stripes in my hair. I put [the colorist] Tracy Cunningham by way of hell as a result of I took my good purple hair and simply bleached it.

CURTIS I used to be in the midst of a ebook tour when my agent known as. An actress had been concerned within the film and selected to not do it; I used to be a substitute half. That was Thursday. I learn the script on Friday, flew residence on Saturday, had my hair dyed purple Sunday, and was working Monday — with a 15-year-old and a 5-year-old at residence, taking part in a 15-year-old. Had I had on a regular basis on the earth to arrange, I don’t suppose it could’ve been so good. I simply needed to be in my physique. I used to be additionally newly sober and I used to be in a position to have a neighborhood inside the movie-work world. That was a giant deal for me.

When did you two first meet?

CURTIS We met in an workplace, did the read-through, and it was sport on in a giant approach. I needed to let go of each management mechanism and simply let it fly. Lindsay was as fluid as I used to be. If you have a look at “The Parent Trap,” she has a facility as an actor that’s actually spectacular. It was a giant job. It was a giant manufacturing. And our relationship was very simple.

LOHAN Jamie confirmed up with such an infectious character that set the tone for the entire day. She instantly took me underneath her wing. I used to be so nervous to do my first kiss on digital camera, so she talked to me in my trailer and made it humorous in order that I wouldn’t stress about it.

How did you step into your characters after the change?

CURTIS The first day, we shot the scene the place we pull as much as the varsity. I’m {the teenager} and I’m fully flummoxed as a result of this sizzling man [played by Chad Michael Murray] is strolling over. My physique freezes up. Mark got here as much as me the following day and stated, “My editor is wondering if the performance is a little big.” I checked out him and stated, “My instinct is all I have to go with. If you don’t like what I’m doing, fire me. I will regret dyeing my hair red, and other than that, it will be fine. But this is what I’m going to do.” Years later, I used to be on the Aero Theater [in Santa Monica] and the editor, who was sitting in entrance of us, stated, “By the way, I was so wrong.”

LOHAN One huge factor was slowing down my speech. I might inform Jamie, “Remind me if I’m going too fast.” And she would say, “Should I do this more slang?” We had been feeling it each day.

What do you bear in mind about working collectively?

CURTIS My strongest reminiscence is the scene the place the 2 of us are within the automotive consuming French fries. Now, if I get a textual content out of the blue, “Hey, Jamie, it’s Linds,” I say, “Prove it. What was the song we were trying to learn the rap to during ‘Freaky Friday’?” If she solutions Justin Timberlake’s “Like I Love You,” then I do know it’s Lindsay Lohan.

LOHAN Now that you simply’ve instructed everybody, we will’t do this anymore. I bear in mind we needed recent French fries, and she or he saved taking the entire good ones.

CURTIS We had been remoted for 3 hours collectively, simply sitting in a automotive taking part in music.

LOHAN I feel should you put the track on, I might realize it instantly.

Jamie, you’re a mom. Lindsay, you’re about to be one. What did this film train you about parenting?

LOHAN To have extra persistence. You wish to allow them to discover and stay the way in which they should stay — with boundaries. I’m not there. I’m getting there. In a yr, come again to me and ask me what it’s like. And then in 16 years.

CURTIS Suspend the judgment, open the ear, pay attention extra. Also, as a mother or father, we’re sizing up on a regular basis: sneakers, garments, meals. It’s all future thought. My lesson from “Freaky Friday” was to be the place your toes are

This film has endured over the past 20 years. How do you are feeling a few sequel?

CURTIS As I went all over the world with “Halloween Ends,” individuals needed to know if there was going to be one other “Freaky Friday.” Something actually touched a chord. When I got here again, I known as my associates at Disney and stated, “It feels like there’s a movie to be made.”

LOHAN Jamie and I are each open to that, so we’re leaving it within the arms that be. We would solely make one thing that folks would completely adore.