Paul Rudnick had an idea. He wanted to write a film inspired by classics like Some Like it Hot and Ball of Fire, with a woman at the center forced into hiding after witnessing a mob hit, and becoming a regular fish-out-of-water in her new surroundings. His arena? Not the traveling roadshow or academia of the aforementioned films, but something much more...holy. The church—specifically, a convent of Catholic nuns. Thus, Sister Act was born. However, the journey from page to screen would be anything but blessed, and the final result nothing short of a miracle from the Hollywood gods themselves.
Rudnick' pitched his idea to Disney, and agreed with the studio that the ideal leading lady would be Bette Midler, who'd seen a mid-career revival at the box office thanks to hits like Outrageous Fortune and Ruthless People; it didn't hurt that both films were also Disney productions. After initial enthusiasm, and Rudnick even being deployed to do research at an active convent in Connecticut, MIdler soured on playing the role, worried about her public image and possible backlash from her fans. It seemed the project was at an end, until Whoopi Goldberg single-handedly resurrected it with her keen interest in playing the lead character. Fresh off her Oscar win for Ghost, Goldberg needed another hit, and she saw potential in Sister Act. With Emile Ardolino (director of Dirty Dancing) on board, the rest of the cast soon filled out. To populate the choir, Music Director Marc Shaiman brought in a who's-who of actresses from stage and screen, including Mary Wickes, Wendy Makenna, Ellen Abertini Dow, and Kathy Najimy, while the role of steely Mother Superior would be filled by two-time Oscar winner Maggie Smith.
The stars were aligned, and cameras were ready to roll. Then came the rewrites, followed by studio notes, followed by more rewrites—a process that frustrated Rudnick to the point that he quit the project, likening it to "being trampled to death by cheerleaders." Over the course of filming, no less than half a dozen screenwriters would take turns polishing the script, including Carrie Fisher, Robert Harling, and Nancy Meyers. However, the script wasn't the only problem—the studio was notoriously finicky on the question of who should play Goldberg's love interest. Harvey Keitel was already cast as the mobster boyfriend Deloris was on the run from, but for the character that would eventually become Lieutenant Eddie Souther, the issue of race came up in more than one heated discussion between Goldberg and then-studio head Jeffrey Katzenberg. Per Rudnick:"The question was, should the officer be Caucasian or African-American? The studio was in a dither of political correctness mixed with business concerns. Was interracial love a brave step forward, or would black audiences object? What about the white Southern demographic? How could the studio keep every moviegoer happy?"
Eventually, Bill Nunn was cast in the role, and production commenced in the fall of 1991. Following completion, Rudnick asked to officially have his name removed from the credits. After a back-and-forth with Disney, he agreed to use a pseudonym, and the script is credited to "Joseph Howard." After such a tumultuous production, nerves were understandably high for the film's opening on May 29, 1992; and despite all the internal turmoil, the swapping of stars, and the mountain of script doctoring, Sister Act saw both critical and commercial praise.
The film follows Reno lounge singer Deloris van Cartier (Goldberg), embroiled in a relationship with mobster Vince LaRocca (Keitel). After witnessing Vince murder an informant, Deloris runs to the police. Lieutenant Eddie Souther (Nunn) decides that Deloris needs to go into witness protection, and places her at Saint Katherine's convent in California, where she will live as a nun until her safety is guaranteed. She butts heads with Mother Superior (Smith), who assigns her to direct the church's seemingly hopeless choir, taking the reins from Sister Mary Lazarus (Wickes). After several rehearsals where she brings the best out of several nuns, including novitiate Sister Mary Robert (Makenna) and the effervescent Sister Mary Patrick (Najimy), the choir debuts both a traditional hymn and a rock-influenced version. While Mother Superior is irate, the Monsignor (Joseph Mara) is delighted. Over time, the church's congregation grows, and the nuns begin to involve themselves in the community more frequently. With Vince's trial approaching, Deloris tells Mother Superior she will soon be leaving, but the Reverend Mother has indicated she will be retiring, saying she is too "old-fashioned" in light of Deloris' success. A corrupt member of Souther's force leads Vince's goons to find and kidnap Deloris, whisking her back to Reno. Mother Superior tells her convent the truth about Deloris, and they travel to Reno to rescue her. After a chase sequence through a casino, Vince traps Deloris and the sisters, preparing to execute them. However, Souther arrives in time to save the day. Deloris joins the choir to lead one final performance in front of Pope John Paul II, and as the credits roll, we see a series of faux magazine articles and album covers depicting Deloris and the sisters' newfound fame.
Sister Act earned over $231 million at the box office, Goldberg's first hit following Ghost. She earned a Golden Globe nomination for her work, and won both an American Comedy Award and an NAACP Image Award. The film's soundtrack also proved a hit. Featuring the songs performed by Goldberg and the ensemble alongside other hits by C+C Music Factory and Etta James, it hit #40 on the Billboard albums chart, eventually earning a Gold certification. The film also proved popular enough to inspire a sequel, and in 1993, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit was released with Goldberg and much of the original cast returning alongside newcomers Lauryn Hill, James Coburn, and Sheryl Lee Ralph among others. In December 2020, Goldberg revealed she had signed on for a third film, with Tyler Perry serving as producer. What's more, the story was also adapted into a musical with songs by Alan Menken; it premiered in the West End in 2009, then opened on Broadway in 2011. Both productions starred Patina Miller and helped launch her career.
30 years later, Sister Act and its related media have a strong foothold in the public consciousness, particularly millennial culture. The film is regularly cited as a quintessential 90s comedy, and proved Whoopi Goldberg's star power. While it's not been without controversy—two separate lawsuits accusing the producers, Rudnick, Midler and Goldberg of plagiarism have been filed and subsequently thrown out of court—the film's enduring legacy is one of joy. Hail Holy Queen (Whoopi), indeed.