Luke Wilson (54) never expected that a Christmas movie from 2005 would still be following him to this day. In an interview with "Entertainment Tonight", the actor spoke about the longevity of "The Family Stone" and confirmed that the sequel is actually happening: "I can't believe it's happening, but it's happening."

The fact that the family comedy has become a staple of many pre-Christmas evenings over the years has surprised him. "It's one of those movies where over the years, more and more people have approached me about it, and then families would say: 'We watch it at Christmas' or 'We watch it at Thanksgiving'. That really surprised me", Wilson said.

He Has Already Read the Script

Thomas Bezucha (62), who worked as writer and director on the original, is once again responsible for the sequel. According to Wilson, he has already gotten his hands on the new script and was impressed: "Tom Bezucha is a great writer and a great director, and I read the script, and it's really funny, and it's so nice that everyone wants to work together again."

Alongside Wilson, the cast of "The Family Stone", as the original title goes, included Rachel McAdams, Sarah Jessica Parker, Claire Danes, Dermot Mulroney, Craig T. Nelson, Elizabeth Reaser, Ty Giordano, Brian White, and Paul Schneider. The role of family matriarch Sybil Stone, whose cancer diagnosis overshadows the family gathering, was played by Diane Keaton (1946-2025).

Diane Keaton's Passing Changes the Project

Keaton's passing has given the project a different tone. For Wilson, the return gains additional weight because of this: "And I think, after Diane Keaton's passing, it becomes even more meaningful, because she was so great in the first film."

After Keaton's passing, Bezucha confirmed to "CNN" that he is working on a sequel and described how much the loss affected him. "I've been haunted by Sybil's loss for months while working on this, and so that was a blow to an already tender spot", he said. Mentally, he had already been in that house for a long time, where he misses her.

What the New Film Might Be Called

What the project will ultimately be called has not yet been officially confirmed. Dermot Mulroney, who played eldest son Everett Stone in the film, spoke about it in May 2026 on the podcast "The Tangle" and expects the title to be "The Families Stone". The production is apparently meeting with open doors from the rest of the ensemble: "Everyone is ready to return. I can say that for the record", Mulroney said.

What "The Family Stone" Is About

When Everett brings his uptight girlfriend Meredith Morton (Sarah Jessica Parker) home to meet his bohemian Stone family over Christmas, she encounters rejection and numerous misunderstandings. As tensions, secrets, and old conflicts come to light, unexpected relationships develop. The family gathering forces everyone to make difficult decisions about love, unity, and acceptance - and changes the Stones' lives forever.