Gia Carides believes the 1992 Aussie classic ‘Strictly Ballroom’ should get a sequel but says its up to director Baz Luhrmann.
With ‘The Adventures Of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert’, set for a sequel, Carides sees potential for ‘Strictly Ballroom’ to also make a return.
She told Stellar she would be over the moon if she got a call from Luhrmann to return.
“I would be completely thrilled,” she said.
“I think it could be extraordinary – but whether Baz wants to do that or not is another question.”
The Greek Australian actress, who played Liz Holt in the critically acclaimed film, is still getting recognised for her role, something she doesn’t get tired of.
“It’s really sweet to have a 20-something barista serving you coffee stop and say, ‘Excuse me, were you in Strictly Ballroom?'”
“Firstly, I’m shocked they can recognise me because I was platinum-blonde with blue contact lenses in that film. But they do completely recognise me because they love the movie, and they love to tell me.
“So that’s always a joy to hear. Never gets old.”
Carides is starring in a new eight-part ABC comedy series ‘Austin’, plays Mel Hogan, the protective mother of Austin (Michael Theo), a neurodivergent man who suddenly turns up in the life of a British children’s book author as the son he never knew existed.
Theo, another Greek, is the breakout star of Australian reality show ‘Love On The Spectrum’, and after getting casted, Carides watched both series of the unscripted ABC dating show – and spent time with Theo’s mum – to better understand the journey of parenting a neurodivergent person.
The two have developed quite a bond that Theo referred to her as his “second mum”.
Carides, who played big-haired Cousin Nikki in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, also talked about the changes in the industry, with Hollywood finally writing roles for women at different stages of life, rather than sticking to a single archetype.
“It seems the work has really heated up and I feel really good, positive and excited,” she said of the new opportunities for older women on screen.
“In the last few years I’ve played some really fun characters that are definitely not that old archetype.
“It seems to have really evaporated because so many of the writers and directors these days are women, and they’re just not going to stand to the boring archetypes that were once written and directed by mostly men.”
Carides comes from an entertainment-loving family, her older sister Zoe is also an actor and younger sister, Danielle, pursued a career in music as a singer-songwriter.
While she got her start at 13, she said she often lost her school life and childhood, something she didn’t want for he daughter Bridget, now 21, when she was a kid and asked to audition for a major production.
“We didn’t see any value in her doing something like that at age 10, so we (her and ex-husband Anthony LaPaglia) said no, and she wasn’t very happy.”
“But now she says, ‘I’m really glad you didn’t let me do that then, I was too young.’ Now her passion and creativity are being channelled into art. She’s a really excellent artist and she’s fascinated with fabric and textile design, accessory design.”
Having wrapped her part on Austin, Carides is now shooting Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story for Stan, and as she said she wants to return for a sequel to ‘Strictly Ballroom’ she also teased that she wants to reprise her role in ‘Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me’.
