Mindy Kaling on Why ‘Legally Blonde 3’ is “Taking Some Time”

After the megahit Legally Blonde came out in 2001, we only had to wait two years for its sequel, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White Blonde, in 2003. But it has been a full 20 years since the second iteration of Elle Woods, and fans are clamoring for Legally Blonde 3, which has been speculated about for years.

The film’s writer, Mindy Kaling, has given us the update we’ve been waiting for, per Entertainment Tonight: in an appearance on the podcast “Table for Two with Bruce Bozzi” (editor’s note: love this show) Kaling explained that, though multiple versions of the script have been written, the industry is currently at a standstill because of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes, which is preventing the project from moving forward.

“Obviously, now we sort of have pencils down because of the writers’ strike, but it’s had a couple of iterations over the past couple of years,” Kaling said. “And I think it’s a challenging project because of what makes it so great. Elle Woods is like Reese [Witherspoon]’s Avengers character, and people feel so passionately about this.”

Kaling is not wrong when she points out that part of the challenge in writing the third movie is recognizing how much has changed culture-wise since the early aughts: “I’m just someone who’s coming in to co-write the third movie, and even I see how excited people are,” Kaling said. “And what is Elle Woods doing in 2023 or 2024 when culture has changed so much since then? And so that’s tricky as a writer—writing something that is incredibly funny and is a great role for Reese but is saying something about feminism now.” Kaling told Entertainment Tonight that the project may be going “a little more slowly than we like but [it’s] just because we really want it to be good,” she said.

Witherspoon’s career was hot in 2001 and 2003 but is even more so now, and Kaling told Bozzi on “Table for Two” that her packed schedule is allowing writers more time to fine tune Legally Blonde 3 until they feel it’s to the standard they want it to be. “[Reese is] shooting shows and movies and everything else, so there isn’t this sense from her that she’s in any desperation or anxiety about getting back into the role,” Kaling said. “She loves the character and wants to do it if it’s exactly right…So it’s been taking some time.”

Witherspoon has said that the new iteration will be heavily focused on not just her character Elle Woods but Jennifer Coolidge’s Paulette Bonafonté, and that there is no Legally Blonde 3 without Coolidge on board. “I’m beyond myself about Jennifer Coolidge,” Witherspoon told Entertainment Tonight. “She deserves every one of those flowers she is receiving right now. And she’s just one of those people who is so naturally gifted and funny and that you can just tell people love her, ‘cause she gets up there and everybody’s like, ‘I love her,’ but she’s just done a lot of good work in our business for so long that it’s really nice to see her getting this incredible moment.”

Coolidge previously told Entertainment Tonight that she hadn’t yet gotten a call about Legally Blonde 3 but would be more than happy to join the cast: “I know nothing,” she said at the time. “I mean, I don’t know if they wanted to surprise me or something, ‘cause I hear about it a lot. I heard that Mindy has this amazing version of our next round, but I haven’t seen it. I don’t have the call yet.” 

Kaling, for her part, said that Paulette is already written into the script, and that Coolidge will “1,000 percent” return for the new installment. “[She] is just someone who all writers would kill to write for,” Kaling said. “She is so funny. She elevates any material, and she is just, like…she can just do a glance, it is just hilarious. And so, as a writer, it’s the jackpot. Especially in that character, her character Paulette, is so funny and their dynamic is so funny. It’s been really great. She [has] a very juicy story in this one. That’s all I can say and, by the way, Elle has a very juicy story. The two of them, seeing what they look like now after 20 years, is really fun.”

We can’t wait!