Ladies rule the school in a newly released teaser for Paramount+’s upcoming series, Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. The Grease prequel project will be landing exclusively on the streamer on April 6 and will tell the story of how Rydell High’s most notorious gang of gals came to be. Picking up in 1954, four years before the events that unfolded in the beloved John Travolta and Olivia Newton John-led movie musical, the plot will follow the founders of the legendary Pink Ladies.
Today’s trailer opens on the only returning character, Principal McGee (Jackie Hoffman) who, at this time in the storyline, is working her way up through the ranks as the Assistant Principal. Playing her iconic morning announcement bells, we see the eager students of Rydell High file into the school after a steamy summer break. As they make their way through the halls, we see gossip being spread and bullies torturing their victims as well as the introduction of the leading ladies including Jane (Marisa Davila), Olivia (Cheynne Isabel Wells), Cynthia (Ari Notartomaso), Nancy (Tricia Fukuhara), and Hazel (Shanel Bailey).
High school dynamics are at play as the jocks clash with the T-Birds and the popular girls harass the outcasts. It’s through this feeling of not fitting in that Jane gets the idea to make a group for the misfits and just like that - the Pink Ladies are born. Strutting their stuff in style with new jackets and a group pledge, the gals quickly take over the halls of Rydell High and change the course of the school’s history forever. Oh, yeah - and there’s tons of singing.
'The Rise of the Pink Ladies' Opens Up the World of 'Grease'
Along with the leading cast, viewers can expect to tune in for performances from Madison Thompson, Jason Schmidt, Jonathan Nieves, Chris McNalle, Maxwell Whittington-Cooper, Josette Halpert, Maximo Weber Salas, Charlotte Kavanagh, and Alexis Sides.
While the Grease fandom was less than pleased with the franchise’s attempt at a sequel via 1982’s Grease 2, the folks behind The Rise of the Pink Ladies are hoping that a new and inventive story will do the trick. Exploring the early days of the “bad girls” club is the franchise’s best chance at bringing the tale to an entirely new generation. Outside of Assistant Principal McGee, the story won’t tie any other original characters in, which is another great way to completely scrap everything and start fresh. However, because the series takes place a mere four years prior to the events of Grease, there’s always a chance that one of the up-and-coming characters will make an appearance, albeit in a younger form.
Check out the latest trailer for Rise of the Pink Ladies below and be sure to buff your pink leather jacket and arrive in style for the show’s premiere on April 6.