Mamma Mia 3 is happening with Meryl Streep set to return

14 August 2024, 14:21 | Updated: 4 June 2025, 14:41

Mamma Mia 3 is happening, says co-creator Judy Craymer. Picture: Universal Pictures

By Katie Louise Smith

Is there going to be a Mamma Mia 3? Meryl Streep confirms she is coming back for another movie as Donna.

Get those suitcases packed ASAP because it looks like we're heading back to the magical island of Kalokairi for one last ABBA singalong, and Meryl Streep is officially on board. Mamma Mia 3? Yes. Really. Here we go again, again.

Talk of another Mamma Mia movie has been on the cards ever since the second film was released. Audiences love it, the cast love filming it... It's pretty much a win-win situation.

Thankfully, both co-creator and producer Judy Craymer, and director of Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again Ol Parker have now confirmed that Mamma Mia 3 is officially in the works.

The latest updates? Christine Baranski (the iconic Tanya) has confirmed that she knows the plot, and Meryl Streep has teased that she will return as our dearly departed Donna Sheridan in a bigger capacity.

Amanda Seyfried has also teased the return as Cher as Donna's mother Ruby.

Read more: Amanda Seyfried wants Sabrina Carpenter to play her daughter in Mamma Mia 3
Read more: 28 Facts About Mamma Mia That You Probably Didn't Even Know

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Will there be a Mamma Mia 3?

Yes! Following years of discussions and interview teases, Mamma Mia 3 is now moving ahead.

Speaking to Screen Rant in December 2022, Ol Parker implied that a third movie is being planned as we speak. "Judy Craymer, the genius producer behind the musical and the first two films, always plan[ned] for it to be a trilogy," Parker said. "That's all I can say. The first one made an enormous amount of money, and I think we made a fair amount too. I know that there is a hunger for a third, and I know that she has a plan. Wouldn't it be lovely?"

In another interview with Deadline, Judy Craymer teased that development on a third film was underway and that plans to bring Meryl Streep back as Donna were very much part of it.

"I don’t want to over-egg it, but I know there’s a trilogy there," she said. "There is a story there, and I do think Meryl should come back – and if the script is right, she would, I think, because she really loved playing Donna."

Will Meryl Streep be in Mamma Mia 3?

Now, I know what you're thinking... Meryl? As Donna? But she's dead! Well, anything is possible on Kalokairi!

Meryl has now confirmed that she will be involved in the third film. Speaking to Deadline at Cannes in 2024, Meryl said: "I don’t know how they’re going to do it. They have an idea. I haven’t heard it yet but it’s in [my diary] and I’m going to hear about it pretty soon. Of course I want to do it. I think folks love it."

Talking to Vogue back in 2023, Meryl also said: "I’m up for anything. I’ll have to schedule a knee scoping before we film, but if there’s an idea that excites me, I’m totally there."

"I told Judy if she could figure out a way to reincarnate Donna, I’m into that. Or it could be like in one of those soap operas where Donna comes back and reveals it was really her twin sister that died."

Meryl Streep confirms her return in Mamma Mia 3. Picture: Alamy

When will Mamma Mia 3 be released?

Based on what the producers and cast have shared, it looks like it might still be a year or two before we return to Kalokairi. The film has also not been given an official green light or release date yet.

In August 2024, however, Christine Baranski told The Hollywood Reporter that she now knows the narrative plot line of the film, so things are moving along.

"That’s all I can say!" Christine teased. "But, it’s not like, 'Oh, I wish it could happen!' Judy Craymer makes things happen. She made number two happen, and it was a phenomenal hit. I wouldn’t put it past Judy Craymer to get everybody back together."

"We’ll all be on some fabulous Greek or Croatian island having a blast. I hope," she added.

Fans will likely have more of an idea of when they can expect the third film to be released when filming officially starts. For context, it took 4 months to film Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again with production taking place in Croatia and Shepperton Studios in the UK. The film was then released around 7 months later in July 2018.

Will Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgard and Colin Firth return in Mamma Mia 3? Picture: Alamy

Who will be in the Mamma Mia 3 cast?

Outside of Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski and Amanda Seyfried who have all confirmed their involvement, there hasn't been any solid confirmations from other cast members... yet!

Given how much the cast loved filming the previous two, we've no doubt that they'll all be back for round 3. Dominic Cooper, Dame Julie Walters, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård will all likely return.

Pierce previously told Good Morning America that he's "in" if a third film is ever made. Julie Walters, who has taken a step back from acting in recent years, also previously confirmed that she would return to the screen specifically for Mamma Mia 3.

Speaking to EW, Christine pretty much confirmed that everyone would jump at the chance to reunite for a third film.

"If we could go back and have the same amount of good fun and be on a Greek island together filming and dining together at night at some wonderful trattoria or taverna, I don't think anybody would give you an argument," she said.

Speaking about her hopes to see Cher return, Amanda Seyfried told E! News: "Cher is definitely going to be in it. I mean, I wouldn’t want to do it without her at this point."

Andy Garcia (Fernando Cienfuegos) may also be back. But of course, it all depends on the storyline... If the plot allows it, we may even see Lily James as young Donna again.

Will Cher be in Mamma Mia 3? SHE BETTER BE! Picture: Universal Pictures

What ABBA songs will be in Mamma Mia 3?

Since the release of Mamma Mia 2, ABBA have reunited and released an entire album of new songs so there's plenty of new material as well as some other tracks from their legendary discography that have yet to appear in the films.

That's great news for Amanda Seyfried who previously told Collider that she was worried there wouldn't be enough new songs for Mamma Mia 3.

'Don't Shut Me Down', 'I Still Have Faith In You' and 'Just A Notion' from 2021's 'Voyage' would make for some incredible Mamma Mia musical numbers. And then there's still the likes of 'If It Wasn't For The Nights' and 'Summer Night City', and even 'Under Attack', which features in the musical but has never appeared in the movies.

As soon as the plot for Mamma Mia 3 is revealed, fans will be able to begin making their own predictions about what could appear on the soundtrack.

What ABBA songs will be in Mamma Mia 3? Picture: Alamy

Mamma Mia 3 plot: What will happen?

As we all know, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again saw flashbacks of Donna Sheridan's life after it was revealed that she had died. Lily James stepped into those famous dungarees to play a young Donna, with Meryl Streep returning as Ghost Donna toward the end of the film.

So, with Donna still dead, what will happen next? Craymer hasn't offered any detailed insight into the storyline of the third film yet, but given that literally anything can happen on that mysterious Greek island... the plot is anyone's guess.

However, Pierce Brosnan has teased in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter that fans will find out the identity of Sophie's real dad in the third film. "I think you’ll have to wait for the next movie. I think leave that one right there. I know who it is, but I don’t want to be a killjoy," he told the publication.

As mentioned, Mamma Mia 3 is still quite a few years away from becoming a reality but as long as Christine Baranski and Julie Walters are back as Tanya and Rosie alongside Meryl as Donna, we'll take anything.