*Tyler Perry has unveiled the first look at “Why Did I Get Married Again?,” bringing back many of the franchise’s original stars nearly two decades after the first film debuted.
The sequel premieres Sept. 9 on Netflix and reunites Perry with returning cast members Jill Scott, Richard T. Jones, Michael Jai White, Tasha Smith, Lamman Rucker and Sharon Leal. Taraji P. Henson joins the ensemble in a new role alongside a younger generation of characters, per the news release.
The story centers on a family celebration in Lake Como, Italy, where Marcus and Angela’s daughter is preparing to get married. As old friends reunite for the destination wedding, they discover that while time has passed, many of the same relationship challenges remain. The gathering also forces them to examine the example they set for their now-grown children, who are beginning to navigate many of the same struggles.
Perry said introducing the next generation helped expand the story beyond the original group of friends.
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“Introducing this new generation of characters gave us an opportunity to give the kids an opportunity to shine and go through things and eventually realize they’re not perfect and neither were their parents,” Perry said in a new interview with PEOPLE.
Returning to the series after so many years felt familiar for the filmmaker.
“Reuniting the gang years later felt like putting on a warm robe,” Perry said, adding that the reunion “lent itself to realizing where we all are in life.”
Perry noted that both the actors and their characters have “all personally grown up and changed and lived lives” significantly since the first film premiered in 2007.
“Some have gotten married, some have gotten divorced, some are happy in long-term relationships,” he said. “Just like these characters being older, we are older and we became the people that we were trying to be when we made the first movie almost 20 years ago.”
The filmmaker said audiences will see how the characters have evolved through life’s challenges.
“I am most excited for audiences to see how these characters have matured and how their love for each other took them through some really hard times,” Perry said. “It’s a wonderful reminder of how people grow, change, mature and settle into what marriage is and not what we think it is when we’re young.”
Henson also teased the film’s setting without revealing many plot details.
“I don’t want to give too much away, but who doesn’t love a destination wedding that brings together old and new friends?” she said.
Check out imagery from the upcoming movie below.
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