Baby’s Back: Jennifer Grey Returns For Dirty Dancing Sequel At Lionsgate

Well, nobody puts Baby in a corner twice… unless Lionsgate does. The studio is officially dusting off Dirty Dancing for a new sequel, and yes, Jennifer Grey is back as Baby. If you grew up with the original 1987 summer-at-the-Catskills romance (Grey falls for Patrick Swayze’s dance instructor Johnny Castle), you know this is a big swing. It’s also a little surprising that they’re going back to Kellerman’s, but here we are.

What’s actually happening

Lionsgate is developing a new theatrical Dirty Dancing movie with Grey not only starring but also executive producing alongside Jonathan Levine. The studio is aiming to start production later this year, and they’ve stacked the team with recognizable names from recent tentpoles. The plan, according to Lionsgate, is to bring the magic, music, and messy feelings of the original to a fresh audience on the big screen, not as a straight-to-streaming play.

The team they’ve assembled

• Star: Jennifer Grey (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Red Dawn, A Real Pain) returns as Baby Houseman and will executive produce.
• Producers: Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson, the duo behind The Hunger Games and Crazy Rich Asians, are overseeing the sequel for Lionsgate.
• Writer: Kim Rosenstock, an Emmy and Golden Globe nominee and 2025 Humanitas Prize winner, is writing the screenplay.
• Studio timeline: Lionsgate is eyeing a start of production later this year, with the film intended for a theatrical release.

The studio’s pitch (translated)

Adam Fogelson, who runs Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group, basically says they waited to put together the right mix of people so fans would actually embrace a return trip to Kellerman’s. With Grey onboard and Jacobson/Simpson producing, the studio says it’s full steam ahead to make a big-screen sequel that hits the nostalgia buttons for longtime fans while giving newcomers an on-ramp.

Jennifer Grey’s take

"The role of Baby has held a very deep and meaningful place in my heart, as it has in the hearts of so many fans over the years... I’ve long wondered where we might find Baby years later... and I’m excited to say that it looks like the wait will soon be over!"

Quick context check

If your first reaction is 'didn’t they already try a follow-up?', you’re remembering 2004’s Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. That one didn’t exactly turn into a generational touchstone. This new project clearly wants to be the official spiritual heir, with Grey front and center and the action pointed back toward Kellerman’s. Producer Nina Jacobson called the original as emotional, exhilarating, and rebellious now as it was then, which is another way of saying they’re aiming for something that feels like a true continuation rather than a loose riff.

So what might this be?

No plot specifics yet. But the setup suggests we’re checking in on Baby years later, which is the right angle if you’re trying to bridge decades of fandom without pretending the original didn’t happen. Also worth noting: bringing in Rosenstock signals they want character-first storytelling with a little bite, not just a playlist of oldies and a final lift.

Bottom line

Lionsgate is betting they can recapture the original’s chemistry with the right people in the room and Grey leading the way. If they stick the landing, this could be the rare legacy sequel that actually earns its return to the dance floor. If not… well, we’ve seen what happens when Dirty Dancing doesn’t find the rhythm.