Inconceivable! ‘Princess Bride’ and other iconic casts reunite for virtual reunions
All-star table reads of iconic films seem to be all the rage right now in the age of the blasted you-know-what. Most are supporting charitable causes.
Here’s a rundown of some recent reunions and where to watch them.
“A Virtual ‘Princess Bride’ Reunion” http://WisDems.org/PrincessBrideReplay“ Life is pain, Highness! Anyone who says differently is selling something.”
That quote from the endlessly charming 1987 classic film seems to be pretty topical at the moment, unfortunately. Talk about the pit of despair! But the cast of the beloved comedy enthusiastically reunited Sept. 13 for a one-night-only virtual table read to raise money for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.
The virtual reunion featured original cast members Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon, Mandy Patinkin, Wallace Shawn, Carol Kane, director Rob Reiner and others. Afterward, the cast participated in a virtual Q&A moderated by Patton Oswalt. The link above asks for any monetary contribution to get access to a replay of the online event. Most donate $27, according to the website, “to ensure that Trump loses Wisconsin, and thereby the White House.” After you donate, you’ll get an emailed receipt with the link and passcode to watch the replay.
“Fast Times At Ridgemont High” Virtual Table Read for CORE https://youtu.be/MaZsPh6uyWg Class is back in session! #FastTimesLive is a virtual table read of the classic 1982 film directed by Amy Heckerling, about a group of Southern California high school students navigating their way through sex, drugs and (some) homework.
This table read didn’t feature the original cast, though. But it did gather quite the star-studded roster in Jennifer Aniston, Dane Cook, Morgan Freeman, Jimmy Kimmel, Shia LaBeouf, John Legend, Ray Liotta, Sean Penn, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. There are no less than five Oscar winners there!
The online event is raising funds for CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort), a nonprofit charity co-founded by Penn (the only original cast member from the film). After the event debuted, most people were buzzing about seeing formerly married Pitt and Aniston reunite online (not as awkward as you’d think), but I think LaBeouf absolutely stole the show as surfer/stoner Jeff Spicoli (played by Penn in the film). Several of the stars broke out into laughter during his scenes. For more information on CORE’s work, go to https://www.coreresponse.org/. To purchase a Spicoli 2020 shirt, go to https://www.bonfire.com/fasttimeslive/.
“Reunited Apart with Josh Gad” https://www.youtube.com/c/joshgad/videos Actor Josh Gad re-assembled casts of some beloved films for virtual reunions, where they reminisced about the movies and even performed some scenes. He then posted the episodes on his YouTube channel. Episodes included casts from such iconic films as “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” “Ghostbusters,” “Lord of the Rings,” “Splash,” “Back to the Future” and “The Goonies.”
They’re very funny and it’s a blast to see how everyone looks today, especially on unflattering webcams and natural lighting. They are human, after all!
“O Brother, Where Art Thou” tribute The Nashville Film Festival will celebrate the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Coen Brothers film with an online reunion of principal cast members, including George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson and Chris Thomas King.
There will also be virtual musical performances by Dan Tyminski of Alison Krauss & Union Station, who provided Clooney’s “Soggy Bottom Boys” singing voice on “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow.” The event, which is part of the festival’s Oct. 1-7 virtual proceedings, is free to Nashville Film Festival pass holders. Tickets for just the “O Brother” event can be purchased for $12 at nashvillefilmfestival.org/2020-festival/.
This story was originally published October 2, 2020 at 6:00 AM.