Meryl Streep is one of the finest actresses in the industry, and she has taken on roles that are both challenging and iconic at the same time. Her portrayal of Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia is, to date, considered one of the greatest.

While the fans loved watching Streep onscreen in the first part of the Phyllida Lloyd directorial, they were expecting the actress to reprise her character for the second part as well. However, much to the audience’s dismay, Streep turned down the offer of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.  

Apart from the Little Women actress, other cast members from the original film, too, skipped returning to the second part, which was released in 2018. Speaking about Streep’s character in the film, the actress played the mother to Amanda Seyfried, who played the lead role of Sophie. Donna Sheridan owns the Villa Donna Hotel and has a twisted past. The Mamma Mia 2 director, Ol Parker, explained the reason behind the cast members not returning to the sequel. 

Speaking to the media portal, the filmmaker claimed, “There was always a massive desire for a sequel. The studio couldn’t have wanted it more, given how much money the original made. But immediately, there was just a struggle. Not every story needs another chapter. So they couldn’t really find a proper version that actually made dramatic sense.” 

The rumored sources have claimed to the media that Mamma Mia 3 might be in works at the studio. However, one of the trusted sources mentioned to the media earlier that the movie has not yet started filming, but many of the previous cast members would reprise their roles in the third installment.

Spoilers ahead for The Umbrella Academy season 4!

The incident that led to Ben Hargreeves’s death was brushed under the carpet throughout the series. Although the Hargreeves siblings mentioned it as The Jennifer Incident numerous times, they never disclosed the details which only heightened the audience’s curiosity. The cat’s finally out of the bag in the final season! 

Ben, played by Justin H. Min was present in the series as a ghost following Robert Sheehan’s Klaus. In the final season, he played a different version of the character who suffered a similar fate which finally revealed the secret that loomed over the show since the beginning. 

The incident took place after Ben met Jennifer (Victoria Sawal), a woman created by Durango. Since Durango and Marigold (what created Ben) can not mix, it creates a severe reaction that could have swallowed the timeline. 

After Ben and Jennifer’s devastating contact, there was no hope for their survival without destroying the world. So, Reginald chose to let his adopted son die and brainwashed the other siblings by wiping their memories of the event. It was Ben’s death that led to the disbanding of the original Umbrella Academy and it took Reginald Hargreeves’ death for the siblings to reunite.