My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 to be Shot in Corfu

The third iteration of the smash hit My Big Fat Greek Wedding will be shot, in part, on the Greek island of Corfu.

The movie was announced last year when Nia Vardalos took to Instagram to share updates on My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3. Fans had been waiting to hear about the highly anticipated installment to her film series, which began with the hit 2002 comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

The actress and producer confirmed on social media that a second sequel to the original film was in the works. Apparently, someone had already found out and leaked the news.

At the time, Vardalos announced that she had already written the script for the film but that production had not yet begun.

“Yes, it is true that for over a year we have been trying to film a script that I wrote called My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3,” she says in the video, adding that, “of course the entire cast is invited back.”

While it’s unclear if the entire original cast will be back for the third film, Lainie Kazan, Toula’s mother, Louis Mandylor, who plays Toula’s brother, and Gia Carides, who plays her cousin, will likely feature in the film.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 to be filmed in Corfu, Greece

Michael Constantine, who played the iconic character of Toula’s father, Gus Portokalos, passed away last August, and Vardalos has stated that the film will serve as a tribute to his life.

“[Constantine] told me he wouldn’t be able to join us for the third film and his wish was that we go on. I wrote the screenplay to reflect Michael’s decision and will always treasure his last messages to me, hoping we were filming soon. The various variants have made indies difficult, but we are hopeful…We miss you Michael, thank you for bringing my words to life with such passion and accuracy…you will always be with us,” Vardalos stated on social media after Constantine’s passing.

The filming in Corfu will likely run from June 5th until August 3rd, and the production team is looking for extras and background actors for many of the scenes.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding, released in 2002, became the highest-grossing romantic comedy of all time and grossed $241.4 million in North America despite never reaching number one at the box office during its release. It was the highest-grossing film with that distinction for fourteen years until the animated film Sing grossed $268 million in 2016.

Greece has become an international filming destination for cinema and television.

The Hollywood film The Expendables 4 was filmed in Thessaloniki in November. A set has been constructed on the eastern side of the city where the cast and crew filmed their scenes over the course of two weeks.

The city hosted several of Hollywood’s brightest stars with Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Megan Fox, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Tony Jaa, and Andy Garcia all participating in the Thessaloniki filming. Franchise creator Sylvester Stallone also participated in the shoot although it was the last time he worked on the series.