Years before Piper Perabo was fighting Beth Dutton on Yellowstone or holding surgeons hostage on Grey’s Anatomy, she was merely a wannabe songwriter from New Jersey, just trying to make a name for herself by dancing on bars in the mean streets of New York City. Coyote Ugly may not be one of the best movies of the 2000s from a critical standpoint, but it was one of my favorites, so I was definitely interested when Perabo spoke about a potential sequel — and just as amused by how she danced around it.
Coyote Ugly, the 2000 dramedy centered around Violet Sanford (Piper Perabo) and the other dancers/bartenders at the titular establishment, has become a cult classic over the years, and apparently there have been talks about revisiting that world. THR spoke with Perabo at San Diego Comic-Con and asked about the status of such talks. The actress carefully replied:
There has been some discussion about that. Some things are being discussed. I can’t really say, but people that were doing it are talking about some stuff.
Well that’s pretty vague but all in all it sounds promising, right? The reporter thought so, saying it sounded like conversations about revisiting the Coyote Ugly bartenders were back on, to which Piper Perabo said:
Among the necessary — and some people that were like, well, we don’t necessarily need, they’re like, ‘Oh, well I wanna be in it.’ So, there’s a lot of cooks in the kitchen right now, but things are moving around.
I am so tickled by all of these half-thoughts escaping from Piper Perabo’s mouth. Could there be a contingent of people saying we don’t need a Coyote Uglier (as jokingly pitched by Perabo’s Butterfly co-star Daniel Dae Kim) or Coyote-er Ugly (Perabo’s contribution)? Sure, but it sounds like some of the actors want it, and I will speak for others who spent the early aughts chanting, “Hell no H2O!” to say that this brand of frivolous, cheesy fun is probably exactly what we need in our lives.
So, is there a script? Piper Perabo remained coy, saying:
I can’t say anything about that, but I will say that people that were integral to making it are in communication about how to do something more.
Let’s just hope those very vague hints of some people communicating in some way about possibly doing something related to a Coyote Ugly sequel continue to move forward.
For those who may have forgotten just how classic the 2000 flick is, not only did it have the likes of Bridget Moynahan and Tyra Banks dancing atop bars, but John Goodman played Violet’s dad, and Melanie Lynskey was excellent as Violet’s BFF Gloria. Coyote Ugly even featured a hilarious performance from Kaitlin Olson in one of her first roles, five years before It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Unfortunately, Coyote Ugly isn’t currently available on streaming, but you can rent it from Amazon Prime Video or Apple TV+, and be sure to catch Piper Perabo in Butterfly, which hits the 2025 TV schedule on Wednesday, August 13, with a Prime Video subscription.
