How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is getting a sequel 23 years after the 2003 release, with Kate Hudson now attached as a producer. The plan also ties Matthew McConaughey to the follow-up, putting the original pairing back at the center of a rare long-gap romcom continuation.
Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey
Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey played Andie Anderson and Benjamin Barry in the original film, where Andie set out to drive Ben away for a magazine article and Ben made a bet with friends to make her fall in love in 10 days. That setup gave the movie a clean commercial hook in 2003, and the sequel is trying to extend the same pairing instead of rebuilding the property from scratch.
Hudson said in a 2022 Life In Pictures talk at BAFTA in London that she and the studio were not agreeing about casting McConaughey. “We just kept hitting our heads against the wall,” she said, adding “and the studio and I weren’t agreeing.” She also said, “We had an energy together, I wanted to play with him,” and “It felt kinetic.”
2003 Casting Fight
Hudson’s account matters because it shows the film was built around a specific on-screen chemistry, not a generic romcom template. She added, “We both have a competitive spirit, we’re both super athletic,” and “We like to push each other and I just love Matthew’s commitment to everything; he’s razor-focused.” Her line that “What you think he is, is” still reads like the kind of casting shorthand producers try to bottle.
There is precedent for that emphasis on performance over package. Gwyneth Paltrow was initially attached to star, and Mike Newell was initially set to direct, but Lynda Obst said Mike Newell's inability to commit to a date led Paltrow to leave the project to film A View From the Top. Donald Petrie signed on after Hudson was already cast, and he later called casting Benjamin Barry “the most difficult part” because “it’s her movie,” “Usually, a big star doesn't want to be second fiddle to the girl. That's just fact.”
Residuals and Rewatch Value
Matthew McConaughey said on the Aug. 13 episode of Happy Sad Confused that How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is the film that still pays him the most residuals. He called it “the gift that keeps on giving,” said “I think it's probably my favorite romcom I've done,” and added, “It still pays the best mailbox money of any film I've ever done.”
He also said, “Every March I'd get a big check because Valentine's Day.” That kind of recurring payout is a blunt sign that the title has remained active well beyond its original release window, which is exactly why a sequel can be treated as a business move rather than nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake.
April and the sequel plan
Kate Hudson told Harper’s Bazaar in April, “How to Lose a Guy feels like a classic at this point,” and “New generations keep finding it.” That is the operating logic behind the sequel: a familiar title, two bankable leads, and a property that still has measurable afterlife.
The complication is the one that will matter to viewers and buyers alike: no information has been confirmed about the plot or cast of the sequel, even though the plan is for Hudson and McConaughey to reprise their roles. For now, the project is a sequel in development, a producer attached, and a pair of old leads still carrying the whole movie until the script says otherwise.
