In 1982, a sequel to the 1978 box office sensation Grease was released. Simply titled Grease 2, the film had almost an entirely new cast of characters. In place of John Travolta’s Danny and Olivia Newton-John’s Sandy are Maxwell Caulfield’s Michael and Michelle Pfeiffer’s Stephanie. The cast change is a bit of a gender swap, with Michael as a British exchange student (and Sandy’s cousin) trying to win over Pink Lady and motorcycle enthusiast Stephanie.
Although Grease 2 was met with less-than-stellar critic reviews and was not a commercial success, it has found love and cult status over the last 40 years. While Caulfield may be surprised by this outcome, he credits the film for covering “the whole spectrum of emotions in high school,” saying, “There’s a little bit of heart, there’s a lot of heartache, but there’s also a lot of joshing around.”
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Grease 2’s Catchy Tunes
Paramount
As the film caught on with newer generations, the musical’s catchier tracks, such as “Back to School Again,” “Score Tonight,” and, of course, “Reproduction,” have become fan favorites. Events such as sing-alongs and screenings have become popular. He confirms, “We’ve done some of our own cast reunions,” and that the fans love to get involved:
One of the film’s most popular tunes, “Reproduction,” is, as the title suggests, about biology. With the topic at hand and teenage hormones flying, it does not take long for the students to push it in a slightly different direction. Although it was filmed in a single classroom, that did not stop it from going big, as Caulfield reflects:
“Some fans have even organized reunions…sometimes we’ve had enthusiastic fans of the film go to a lot of trouble to track us all down, rent a movie house, sell some tickets, or at least make tickets available to other real fans of the film. They can interact with the actors, before and after.”
“Shooting that scene ‘Reproduction,’ it’s one thing to watch it and love it, but to actually be in that scene… I can’t ever forget it. All those wonderful young dancer-singers were going off around me.”
And, of course, how can anyone overlook the grand opening, “Back to School Again,” which features Motown legends The Four Tops. Although the production and choreography were top-notch, Caulfield explains why this may have actually gone against the film:
Patricia Birch is a well-known dancer and choreographer who has worked on Grease, Saturday Night Live, and popular music videos. In addition to serving as choreographer for Grease 2, she also directed the film. “Pat didn’t get nearly enough credit for the work she did as a director on that film,” Caulfield said. “She directed it very well,” he continued. He also takes a moment to acknowledge the extra effort it took in the early ’80s for the crew to get the right shot:
“That was one of the criticisms leveled against the film. We gave ourselves nowhere to go because we’d come on so strong with that opening number that the critics went, ‘Oh okay, this is going to be good.’ To begin with, it was The Four Tops singing. So that got us off to a great start, but it was also Pat Birch at her best with her choreography.
With Grease 2 being Maxwell Caulfield’s first feature film, the actor also remembers how the extra time landed him in some hot water on set:
Good directors create atmosphere, and we were on a high school campus, a genuine one, and we were obviously wearing the gear and the hairdos, so half the work was done for us. In terms of getting us all to that point where the cameras would roll, that’s the director’s job, and obviously, setting the camera knowing who to focus on. Now everything’s shot in digital, so these days, they just roll and roll. But in the old days, we did camera tests, and it was hours getting the lighting right.
From Michael to Rex: A Pop Culture Icon
Warner Bros.
Along with Grease 2, 1995’s Empire Records is another Maxwell Caulfield-starring cult film. It defined teen angst in the mid-90s and is still considered one of the decade’s best film soundtracks. While Caulfield may have played the sleazy former pop idol Rex Manning, fans still recognize April 8th as “Rex Manning Day.” Every year, memes, GIFs, and clips featuring Caulfield are shared on social media with Ethan Embry’s iconic quote, “We mustn’t dwell… no, not today. We can’t! Not on Rex Manning Day!”
That’s one of the reasons I got into trouble. It took so long to light; I’d go to my trailer and would be there thrashing away to The Who on my cassette player. They’d knock on the door and say, ‘Okay, Max, we need you on set.’ I’d go, ‘Okay, okay, I’ll be there,’ thinking I’d already been waiting for an hour and a half or something, so I’ll just wait until the end of this side of the album. I’ll just give one more song. I didn’t realize when they said, ‘We need you on set,’ it means to get your buns out now. You learn the hard way.
When asked if being a pop culture icon is something he embraces, Caulfield responded:
“I’m thrilled is the honest answer to that. The idea that I touched you guys at a pivotal point in your lives and that it still means something. We all need people. For example, James Dean will always be my hero no matter how many decades I’ve lived longer than he was on this earth. I’m not suggesting I’m any kind of hero – well, I was playing a kind of a heroic role in Grease 2, but I was kind of the villain in Empire Records.”
He also jokingly looks back at playing Manning at that point in his life, compared to starring in Grease 2:
What’s Next for Grease
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Grease 2, Paramount has released a Limited Edition Blu-ray Steelbook with all-new artwork. Even four decades after the franchise’s last feature film release, the studio assures us that there is still plenty to come.
“John Cassavetes, the wonderful filmmaker and husband of Gena Rowlands, said very often an actor gets cast in a role that represents where they’re at in their life. Both those roles were somewhat representative of where I was at. In 1982, I was on a complete high. I just married my beautiful wife, Juliet Mills, and I was in love with America. I did have a motorcycle, and as I said, had just married a beautiful blonde, and I got cast opposite a beautiful blonde. Then flash forward to the mid-90s when we made Empire Records. I guess, yeah, I was an over-the-hill teen idol. [Laughter]”
Paramount+’s Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies is one such project fans are eagerly anticipating. The TV series will be a prequel to the first two films and follow more Rydell High student shenanigans. Caulfield is happy to show his support for the show, saying, “I think that’s wonderful. I hope Rise of the Pink Ladies ushers in a new era of joy and celebration.”
