Maitreyi Ramakrishnan Joins Cast of ‘Freaky Friday 2,’ Directed by Indian American Nisha Ganatra
- This is the "Never Have I Ever” star's second feature film after Netflix’s romantic comedy “The Netherfield Girls.”
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, the breakout star of Mindy Kaling’s “Never Have I Ever,” has joined the cast of “Freaky Friday 2,” which will get a nationwide theatrical release in 2025, rather than going straight to Disney+. Details of her role are under wraps.
Directed by Nisha Ganatra, the sequel marks the return of Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan along with original cast members — Mark Harmon, Chad Michael Murray, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Haley Hudson, Lucille Soong, Stephen Tobolowsky and Rosalind Chao. The script of the sequel is written by Jordan Weiss, while Andrew Gunn, who worked on the original film, will produce, alongside Kristin Burr.
Released in 2003, “Freaky Friday” grossed $160 million worldwide, according to Deadline. The film introduced viewers to Tess Coleman (Curtis), a single mother and uptight psychiatrist, and her rebellious teenage daughter, Anna (Lohan). Constantly at odds with each other due to their differing perspectives on life, the pair find themselves magically swapping bodies after a mysterious fortune cookie incident at a Chinese restaurant. As Tess wakes up in Anna’s body and vice versa, mother and daughter are forced to live each other’s lives for a day.
The film is based on the same-name children’s book by Mary Rodgers, which was previously adapted into a 1976 film starring Barbara Harris and Jodie Foster as mother and daughter.
According to Deadline, the sequel, which “boasts a multigenerational twist,” picks up years after the mother and daughter endured a body-swapping identity crisis. Anna now has a daughter of her own and a soon-to-be stepdaughter. As they navigate the myriad challenges that come when two families merge, Tess and Anna discover that lightning might indeed strike twice.
The Canada-born Ramakrishnan, among actresses, is undoubtedly the northern neighbor’s biggest export to Hollywood since Rachel McAdams shot into fame in “Mean Girls” nearly two decades ago. Although there have been many male actors who became megastars in America, including Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling, and Jim Carey, very few women have broken through stardom as Ramakrishnan did.
In her debut outing, “Never Have I Ever,” she plays Devi Vishwakumar, a first-generation Indian American growing up in California’s San Fernando Valley. Devi, a high school sophomore, is coping with her father’s death and struggling with her identity, while also trying to navigate the high school social scene. The series, co-created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, is loosely based on Kaling’s years growing up.
Ramakrishnan, who refers to herself as a Tamil Canadian, was born and raised in Mississauga, Ontario. She was born to Tamil parents who immigrated to Canada as refugees from Sri Lanka due to the civil war. She was included and named a Breakout Actor in Time’s Time100 Next list of influential, rising stars.
She made her feature film acting debut in the Netflix romantic comedy “The Netherfield Girls,” a contemporary adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel “Pride and Prejudice” She stars as Lizzie Bennet, the protagonist of Jane Austen’s classic novel who eventually discovers the man she thinks is Mr. Wrong is in fact Mr. Right.