Disney has officially announced that production has begun on on Maleficent II in the UK at Pinewood Studios and on various other locations across the country.
Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning will reunite as they reprise their roles as Maleficent and Aurora in the follow-up which picks up several years after the first outing.
Along with the announcement Disney also released an official synopsis, it reads; A fantasy adventure that picks up several years after “Maleficent,” in which audiences learned of the events that hardened the heart of Disney’s most notorious villain and drove her to curse a baby Princess Aurora, “Maleficent II” continues to explore the complex relationship between the horned fairy and the soon to be Queen, as they form new alliances and face new adversaries in their struggle to protect the moors and the magical creatures that reside within.
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Further casting announcements have also been made for the sequel. Joining Jolie and Fanning on the cast are Michelle Pfeiffer as Queen Ingrith, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Ed Skrein, Robert Lindsay and Harris Dickinson as Prince Phillip.
Additional cast members returning from the 2014 film include Sam Riley as Diaval; Imelda Staunton as the pixie Knotgrass; Juno Temple as the pixie Thistlewit; Lesley Manville as the pixie Flittle.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Joachim Rønning takes over the director’s chair from Robert Stromberg in the follow-up to the 2014 movie.
Maleficent is the untold story from the studio’s animated classic, Sleeping Beauty in which Maleficent and Princess Aurora both feature. The 2014 production grossed more than $750 million at the global box office.
The only thing Disney have kept under wraps is a scheduled release date.
