In a preview from his conversation with Willie Geist for Sunday TODAY, Chris Pine looked back at how much his role as Anne Hathaway’s love interest in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement impacted his career.
Pine recalled the exact moment he got the life-changing call saying he had been cast as Nicholas Devereaux. He was on the freeway, driving his 1972 BMW that he owned since he was 16, at a time in his life when he had only booked small TV roles.
“I got a call from my agent saying I booked the job, and I pulled over to the side of the freeway, and they said, ‘You’re getting paid $65,000,’” said the actor. “It was like they had just told me I’d make $15 million.”
Pine shared that getting the call was “absolutely earth-shattering” as he was severely struggling financially. “I had an overdraft on my bank account. It was like $400 over. I was going to have to ask my parents for money, and then I got that 65,” he said.
“I remember distinctly knowing in that moment that my life had changed somehow,” Pine continued, “even though 65 at the end of the day turned out to be like $15,000.”
“And I owed my parents rent money,” he added. “But that is a wild feeling. I’ll never forget that.”
While Princess Diaries 2 was Pine’s first major role, which resulted in him being cast as the leading man in the 2006 Lindsay Lohan-starring rom-com Just My Luck two years later, Pine didn’t receive his big break until Star Trek. In the J.J. Abrams-directed reboot, Pine took over William Shatner’s role as Captain Kirk.
Two decades later, he might reunite with Mia Thermopolis. In 2022, The Hollywood Reporter announced that a third Princess Diaries movie was in the works at Disney. Pine has expressed a desire to reprise his role as Nicholas, telling Entertainment Tonight in 2023, “I’m here for it. Give me a phone call or an email.”
However, no developments have been made in its production, as Julie Andrews told TODAY in March that there was “some dialogue about it” but “nothing had been realized.”
Pine’s chat with Geist airs May 5 on Sunday TODAY.
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