Judy Craymer launched the Mamma Mia! stage show 21 years ago as a celebration of the music of Swedish pop group ABBA. The show was so successful that it caught the eye of Hollywood, which adapted the feature into a full-length movie starring Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried, and then a follow-up sequel. In a new interview, Craymer reveals Mamma Mia 3 is now on the way with 4 more Abba songs.

"I was meant to have been getting on with that, in my head, during these months. But then I got hit with COVID fog. I think one day there will be another film, because there's meant to be a trilogy, you see. I know Universal would like me to do it."

The original Mamma Mia! movie told the tale of Donna, played by Streep, and her daughter Sophie, played by Seyfried. Their idyllic life living on the Greek islands is cut short by Sophie's wedding, for which Sophie has secretly invited three mysterious men mentioned in Donna's old journal, one of whom is her father.

Hi-jinks and misunderstandings ensue, all queued to the rollicking soundtrack of ABBA's greatest hits. The film was a huge success at the box office, and the sequel was also a hit, revealing the youthful days of Donna when she met the three men who would one day become Sophie's maybe-fathers, once again mining Abba's evergreen hits for getting audiences involved in the drama.

It is difficult to imagine where the story could go after Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again with a third movie, especially with the first two having already squeezed the pop group's discography dry. Craymer goes on to mention that she intends to use the four new Abba numbers Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus have written for the virtual concert they've planned with Agnetha Faltskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.

Of course, the main appeal of the Mamma Mia! franchise is in the rousing song-and-dance numbers and infectious enthusiasm of the cast held together with a wafer-thin plot. The upcoming sequel need only ensure that it has a sufficient number of ABBA hits for audiences to sing along to, and fans will forgive any stretching the movie has to do in terms of plot.

It will also be interesting to see if the third Mamma Mia! movie will feature new characters and actors to focus on. The original Mamma Mia had Streep and Seyfried take center stage. The sequel jumped back in time to focus on a younger version of Streep's character, this time played by Lily James. The movie ended with the birth of Seyfried's daughter, so it is quite possible that the second sequel will see the daughter growing into a young woman just like her mother and grandmother before her, to the soundtrack of ABBA songs.

For now, fans of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again starring Streep, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried, Lily James, and Cher, can watch the movie when it becomes available for streaming on Netflix from June 26. This story comes from Daily Mail.