EXCLUSIVE
Key members of the original cast of "American Pie" will reunite for "American Reunion," which will bring the popular franchise back to movie theaters, rather than direct-to-DVD, TheWrap has learned.
Jason Biggs, Seann William Scott and Eugene Levy are already signed, with Universal in negotiations with Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tara Reid, Chris Klein, Mena Suvari and Jennifer Coolidge.
The studio is hoping to bring back most of the original cast, including Alyson Hannigan, who currently plays Lily Aldrin in CBS's "How I Met Your Mother," and Shannon Elizabeth.
The movie has a start date of May 24.
Scott, who played Steve Stifler in the first three installments in the franchise, checked himself into a treatment program "to address health and personal issues," the actor announced Tuesday. An individual close to the production says this is not expected to affect the production.
"Harold & Kumar's" Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg are writing and directing. Chris Moore and Craig Perry will produce with Adam Herz and Paul & Chris Weitz executive producing.
Universal's senior executive VP of production, Peter Cramer, and creative executive Kiska Higgs will oversee the project for the studio.
The previous three "American Pie" movies grossed a total of nearly $755 million at the worldwide box office. The first of the series, 1999's "American Pie," grossed $235 million and had an $11 million budget. The second, 2001's "American Pie 2," took in $287 million and had a $30 million budget. The third, 2003's "American Wedding," grossed $231 million and had a $55 million budget.
In 2005, Universal released "American Pie Presents Band Camp" direct to DVD. Levy starred.
ItsontheGrid.com contributed to this report.
