Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart in a ‘Just Friends’ Sequel? – Amy Wonders if Chris and Jamie Ended up Together [Exclusive]
From A Christmas Story to Hocus Pocus, 2022 is the year of the sequel. So, what about the Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart 2005 Christmas movie Just Friends? The film ended with a bit of a cliffhanger when main characters Chris Brander (Reynolds) and Jamie Palamino (Smart) finally decided to give romance a shot.
Did they live happily ever after? Smart recently told Showbiz Cheat Sheet she wonders what happened to those crazy kids and how a Just Friends sequel could materialize.
‘Just Friends’ fans have asked about a sequel with Amy Smart and Ryan Reynolds
The movie that started as a slow burn became a “must-watch” every holiday season for many fans, who laughed along at the late blooming romance between two high school best friends during Chris’s less-than-triumphant return to his childhood home in New Jersey.
“Fans of the movie do ask, but I have not heard anything,” Smart said about a Just Friends sequel. “I would love so much to do a sequel. And I think at this point it would just be so much fun. I mean, at this point, we’d be parents in it. There could be so much comedy happening. So, maybe it’s just a matter of time ’till (filmmaker) Roger Kumble wants to make a sequel.”
Does she think the cast would return, including Ryan Reynolds? “Probably,” Smart said. “I mean we just need to make it happen! I think it would be so much fun!” That would also mean bringing back Anna Faris. “And Chris Klein!” Smart exclaimed. “We need all four of us back!”
Would Chris Brander and Jamie Palamino still be together in a ‘Just Friends’ sequel?
The question is would Jamie Palamino and Chris Brander even be together? They were best friends in high school, but their paths took very different routes. Chris lost a significant amount of weight, moved to Hollywood, and embraced a shallow persona. Whereas Jamie remained in Jersey, still optimistic, and was working toward being a teacher.
Smart isn’t sure where Jamie and Chris would be today. “Good question,” Smart said. “I mean that’s up to the writers, right? But you would want them to (be together), but you gotta have drama so I don’t know what would happen.”
Another big question is would Jamie and Chris be a Hollywood or a Jersey couple? “Does he take her out of Jersey and get her all Hollywood?” she laughed.
Amy Smart said ‘Just Friends’ is 1 of her favorite films she’s worked on
Smart also recalled what she (and Reynolds) considers to be the coldest location on earth to film.
“We had so much fun working on that movie. Like, honestly, it was one of my favorite movies I’ve worked on,” she said. “The comedy was so fun. We had so many fun outtakes. We were shooting in Regina, Saskatchewan, and it was the coldest I’ve ever experienced in my life. We got there in January and it was like 40 degrees below zero, so couldn’t even be outside.”
“And by the end, it was like zero degrees when we could actually shoot the outdoor ice skating and outdoor Christmas lighting stuff,” she continued. “I mean, it was freezing. But regardless of that, we just all had such a fun experience that it’s really hard to pinpoint my favorite part because yeah, there were gems almost daily there.”
At one point Jamie punches Chris in the face toward the end of the film, which looked pretty impressive. Did Smart really hit Reynolds? “I mean … did I?” she wondered. “I mean if I did … accidentally.”
Reynolds also fell in love with the film. He recreated the famous “I Swear” lip sync for the first TikTok he made. The video garnered 10.5 million likes.
