Paul McCartney and Elton John are set to appear in the upcoming sequel to This Is Spinal Tap.
Rob Reiner, who directed the original 1984 mockumentary film starring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer, confirmed various guest stars in the sequel during an appearance on Richard Herring’s Leicester Square Theatre Podcast.
Speaking on the podcast about the sequel, which was announced in May last year, Reiner said: “We’re going to start shooting in the end of February.
“Everybody’s back. Paul McCartney is joining us, and Elton John. And a few other surprises, Garth Brooks.”
Along with directing the sequel, Reiner is set to reprise his role as filmmaker Marty DiBergi. McKean, Guest and Shearer will all return as the fictional metal band, comprised of David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls respectively.
Speaking about the sequel to NME in May last year, Reiner said: “We never thought we would do a sequel. It was only because we started to talk to each other and we came up with an idea we think might work – we don’t know it will. We’re going to try. The bar is incredibly high. We debated whether or not we should do it… I said, ‘Look at us, we’re all in our 70s. How much time are we going to have [left] to have some fun?’”
Regarding the plot, the sequel looks set to see DiBergi shoot a second film for the band in a bid for redemption.
“Marty DiBergi was roundly criticised by the band members for having done a hatchet job, [but] he’s going to be doing the second film,” Reiner told NME. “Marty has not been that successful [since]. I think he made Kramer vs Kramer vs Godzilla, which didn’t do very well. It was a threesome, and they were all in love… and, unfortunately, Godzilla crushed the other two, so it didn’t work.”
The sequel to This Is Spinal Tap was originally slated to be released in March 2024 to coincide with the original film’s 40th anniversary. With filming set to begin in February, however, it’s unclear when the sequel will be released.
