Elizabeth Banks, actress and producer of Pitch Perfect, will be taking a seat in the director’s chair Pitch Perfect 2. Although she has directed several comedic shorts before, Pitch Perfect 2 will be her first feature film.
Pitch Perfect followed Beca (Anna Kendrick), a freshman at Barden University who reluctantly joins an all girl a cappella group called the Barden Bellas and helps them advance to the finals. Brittany Snow and Rebel Wilson also starred as members of the Barden Bellas. Kendrick and Wilson are both expected to reprise their roles for the upcoming sequel, although there have not yet been any official confirmations of their involvement.
In addition to producing, Banks co-stars in the first film as an announcer for the a cappella competition. Universal Pictures chairman Donna Langley expressed her enthusiasm for having Banks back on board in an expanded capacity, saying, “Elizabeth originated the idea for Pitch Perfect and was instrumental in making the first film such a huge success. She brings an enormous amount of energy and experience to everything she works on and we’re thrilled that she is making her feature directorial debut on Pitch Perfect 2.” Banks recently reprised her role as Effie Trinket in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and is also voice-acting one of the leading roles in The Lego Movie, coming out on February 7.
Kay Cannon, who wrote Pitch Perfect, is writing Pitch Perfect 2 as well as co-producing with Gold Circle’s Jeff Levine and Paul Brooks and Brownstone Productions’ Max Handelman. Scott Niemeyer from Gold Circle will executive produce.