What happened to the Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit cast? 30 years after hit movie premiered, look at what became of its stars, from Whoopi Goldberg’s controversial daytime TV career to Maggie Smith’s glittering on-screen success

• Whoopi went on to be a co-host on The View and regularly makes headlines for her bold comments 
• Kathy Najimy is now a proud activist in addition to being an actor 
• Some of the cast members like Barnard Hughes, Mary Wickes and James Coburn have since passed away 

Fans of Sister Act might be shocked to learn that the sequel to the hit movie musical, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, released 30 years ago.

Sister Act (1992) was such a hit that its sequel hit theaters the following year.

The film reunites Las Vegas performer Deloris (Whoopi Goldberg) with her nun friends Sister Mary Patrick (Kathy Najimy) and Sister Mary Lazarus (Mary Wickes) in order to save a troubled school’s music department.

When the administrator, Mr. Crisp (James Coburn) threatens to cut the program, Deloris puts her habit back on and wrangles the kids into a proper choir. 

Sister Act 2 reunites Las Vegas performer Deloris (Whoopi Goldberg) with her nun friends Sister Mary Patrick (Kathy Najimy) and Sister Mary Lazarus (Mary Wickes) in order to save a troubled school’s music department

When the film hit thetaers on December 10, 1993, it was liked by fans but received a shockingly low score of 18 per cent from critics.

Despite the low rating, there is talks of making yet another sequel 30 years after the fact.

An insider close to Whoopi Goldberg told Daily Mail that Sister Act 3 is slated to happen. 

They explained: ‘The new Sister Act is going to happen. They have the idea, they have Whoopi. Once the strikes are done, they are ready to make the film for the fans and a new generation.

‘They have to figure out money, and who to cast but Whoopi is very anxious to get the ball rolling.’

Aside from potentially reuinting for Sister Act 3, the cast of sister Act has been plenty busy from other acting gigs to activism projects. 

 Here’s what became of the cast os Sister Act 2 30 years later.

Whoopi Goldberg – Deloris

Whoopi Goldberg was the leading lady of the Sister Act franchise and continued to be a force as a comedian, actress and talk show host

Whoopi Goldberg was the leading lady of the Sister Act franchise and continued to be a force as a comedian, actress and talk show host. 

While Whoopi was mostly known for her stand-up work, she continued to appear in movies after Sister Act incluiding Eddie (1996), Cinderella (1997) and Girl, Interrupted (1999).

She returned to her standup roots in 2005 with her special Whoopi: Back to Broadway. She followed that show up with Whoopi Goldberg: The Word According to Whoopi in 2007.

That same year, she joined as a host on The View as a replacementfor Rosie O’Donnell. She went on to become an executive producer and is still on the show  to this day.

During her time on the show, she has opened up on personal matters including her distaste for marriage. 

When her co-host Joy Behar opened up about how hard divorce was, Whoopi couldn’t have been happier during her three divorces.

Whoopi then blurted out: ‘I was dancing and prancing around, I was so glad to get out of there! Every time! Because I always knew, I always thought, ‘you didn’t want to do this from the giddyap! You knew you didn’t want to do it and you did it anyway so shut up and move on!”

While Whoopi was mostly known for her stand-up work, she continued to appear in movies after Sister Act

Second attempt: Whoopi’s second marriage was to a man named David Claessen in September 1986

Short run: Lyle and Whoopi’s marriage lasted a year or less as they split in 1995

Joy then questioned: ‘Why did you do it?’ to which Whoopi responded: ‘I thought I could make a round hole go into a square peg. I thought that that was what was for me.

Whoopi has been married for three times. 

Before she found fame onstage and onscreen, Whoopi said ‘I do’ to a man named Alvin Martin in 1973.

According to reports, Alvin was working as a drug counselor at the time and that’s how he and Whoopi met.

In May 1974, the couple welcomed a daughter named Alexandrea, who now works as an actor and producer.

Sadly, Whoopi’s first marriage wasn’t meant to be and she and Alvin got divorced in 1979 – and the Ghost actor has since admitted that she only got married because she was conforming to what society expected her to be doing.

Speaking in an interview with Piers Morgan in April 2011, Whoopi explained: ‘I wanted to feel normal, and it seemed to be that if I was married, I’d have a much more normal life. But clearly that’s not the case, that’s not a good reason to get married.

‘You have to actually want a life with someone through ups and downs and I discovered that wasn’t for me,’ she added.

Four years after kicking off her movie career, Whoopi got hitched to her second husband, a cinematographer named David Claessen in September 1986 after they met earlier that year during production of a documentary entitled Who Are They?

Whoopi was 30 years old at the time, and David was four years her junior. It was his first marriage – but unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be as the couple had called it quits by 1988.

She returned to her standup roots in 2005 with her special Whoopi: Back to Broadway

She joined as a host on The View in 2007 as a replacement for Rosie O’Donnell. She went on to become an executive producer and is still on the show to this day

Whoopi decided to try marriage for a third time and wed actor and unionist Lyle Trachtenberg in October 1994.

It’s thought the couple had met on set the year before, and while an exact date of their split is unknown – the pair didn’t make it through 1995 without getting a divorce.

Even though she realized marriage wasn’t for her, she discussed how she was upset she no longer had the opportuntiy to have kids. 

‘I always could control when I got pregnant, it was in my control. And I can say the only thing that really irritated the hell out of me was the fact that I woke up and I thought, ‘Oh I don’t have a choice now. I’m not in charge of this anymore,” she said of menopause.

She has also addressed speculation about her sexuality. When Raven Simone appeared on The View, she said she always had the feeling Whoopi was a lesbian. 

Whoopi didn’t seem phased at all by the line of questioning and responded: ‘Women have been asking me this for as long as I’ve been around, I am not a lesbian. But I know lots of them, and I’ve played them on television.’

The mother-of-one continued: ‘But I have always had lesbian friends because they’re just my friends,’ before recalling a conversation she had with one of her pals.

‘I’m not gonna kiss you, but I’ll kiss you over here, I’ll do this but I’m not going to do this… And they’re like, ‘OK!” she explained.

Lately, there has been speculation that Whoopi is going to retire. However, in October, she explained that she already felt she was retired. 

‘I’ve done nothing but retire. I’ve been retired my whole career,’ Whoopi joked of her career trajectory. 

Kathy Najimy – Sister Mary Patrick

Kathy Najimy played Deloris’ nun friend Sister Mary Patrick. She seemingly enjoyed her time in both films so much that she said she’d be willing to return for a third

Kathy Najimy played Deloris’ nun friend Sister Mary Patrick.

She appeared in both Sister Act and the hit film Hocus Pocus before appearing in Sister Act 2. 

She seemingly enjoyed her time in both films so much that she said she’d be willing to return for a third. 

She told Vogue: ‘I guess so! It’s all about who and when and where. I get to see Whoopi [Goldberg] on The View, so maybe we can have a talk backstage over the crafts service food. I never say never.’

Since Sister Act 2, Najimy continued to act. In 1997, she landed a longstanding gig as Peggy on King of the Hill. She also starred in Veronica’s Closet alongside Kirstie Alley.

She also had big updates in her personal life, marrying The Dan Band singer Dan Finnerty in 1998. 

She continued to do voiceover work as she had and raised their daughter Samia.

She starred in the hit film Hocus Pocus before appearing in Sister Act 2. She also appeared in the Hocus Pocus sequel, Hocus Pocus 2 (2022)

She continued to do voiceover work as she had and raised their daughter Samia

Najimy also became passionate about activism

She continued appearing in movies as her daughter got older starring in The Guilt Trip (2012), Descendants (2015) and Single All the Way (2021).

She also appeared in the Hocus Pocus sequel, Hocus Pocus 2 (2022). 

Najimy also became passionate about activism. 

‘I am a political person and an activist before I am an actor. It’s not something you decide; it’s just something you are,’ she told Vogue.

‘I know that some people believe that, as a known person, you should just be unbiased and not really tether yourself to any one political opinion or view. 

‘But I don’t have any kind of muscles in my body that will allow me not to be an activist.’

She explained that she was especially passionate about advocating for LGTBQ+ and reproductive rights. 

She shared: ‘For years, my causes have been around LGBTQ+ rights and women’s rights—the protection, equality, and respect of women. Recently, I’ve been speaking out on abortion rights and respecting women’s decisions on how they want to design their family and what they want to do with their life.’ 

Barnard Hughes – Father Maurice

Barnard Hughes played Father Maurice, the friar at the troubled school that Deloris and her nun friends come to help. He died on natural causes on Jully 11, five days before his 95th birthday

Barnard Hughes played Father Maurice, the friar at the troubled school that Deloris and her nun friends come to help.

He was already starring in the TV series Blossom by the time he starred in Sister Act 2. He stayed on that series until 1994.

He also went on to star in The Odd Couple II (1998) and The Fantasticks (2000).

Hughes was a passionate actor, telling The New York Times, ‘I’m a feeler.’  

 ‘As a matter of fact, I think if we had more feelers and less thinkers we’d be a hell of a lot better off — not only in the theater, either.’

Unfortunately, Hughes passed away in 2006 at 90 years old.

He died on natural causes on Jully 11, five days before his 95th birthday.

He was survived by his wife Helen Stenborg – who later died in 2011 -, two children Laura and Doug and grandson.

Mary Wickes – Sister Mary Lazarus 

Mary Wickes plays the stern nun who headed the choir, Sister Mary Lazarus, in both Sister Act and Sister Act 2. Unfortunately she died in 1995 at age 85 from complications during hip surgery

Mary Wickes plays the stern nun who headed the choir, Sister Mary Lazarus, in both Sister Act and Sister Act 2.

Wickes was already an established actress when she joined the Sister Act franchise. 

Prior to Sister Act, she was best known for playing Emma Allen in White Christmas (1954). 

Even though it wasn’t her best known role, perhaps her most coveted role was playing Mary Poppins in the Studio One anthology TV series.

She was passed on for Disney’s movie adaption and Julie Andrews landed the titular role. 

‘She always resented that she didn’t get the kind of attention she felt she deserved,’ Steven Taravella, the author behind her biography Mary Wickes: I Know I’ve Seen that Face Before, told St. Louis Magazine.

‘It’s not that she didn’t get the role. What bothered her most is there was no appreciation for her earlier role.’

Even still, she had a profilic career. 

‘She worked with everybody who was anybody,’ Taravella said. ‘She was always so appealing, this wisecracking sarcastic sidekick—never the star.’

‘Maybe that’s why she played those kinds of roles with that kind of authenticity,’ he explained. ‘She was at heart salty and crotchety.’

Even after Sister Act 2, she continued to land big roles.

Played Aunt March in Little Women (1994) and did voice acting in Life with Louie (1995-1997) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996). 

Unfortunately she died in 1995 at age 85 from complications during hip surgery. 

The actress never married or had children. 

Maggie Smith – Mother Superior

Maggie Smith played none other than the head nun, Mother Superior, in the Sister Act franchise. While she didn’t have as big of a role in Sister Act 2 as she did in the original Sister Act, Whoopi has made it known that she would want Smith to be in sister Act 3

Maggie Smith played none other than the head nun, Mother Superior, in the Sister Act franchise.

While she didn’t have as big of a role in Sister Act 2 as she did in the original Sister Act, Whoopi has made it known that she would want Smith to be in sister Act 3.

‘You know, one of the things that I want to make sure I do while I’m here is… I want to let Maggie Smith know that I’m holding the part of Mother Superior for you [Maggie]. Because I just can’t do it with anybody but you, she said to Loose Women’s Judi Love.

‘So if you need me to come over here [to England] and shoot and do whatever we have to do, we will do whatever you want us to do, but we don’t want to do it without you.’

One of her most notorious roles was Violet Crawley in Downton Abbey

Outside of those franchises, her most recent credit includes The Miracle Club (2023)

The dame has continued to have an extensive career since the Sister Act franchise.

Her most notorious roles have been Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter franchise and Violet Crawley in Downton Abbey.

Surprisingly, even though they may have been her most well-known biggest roles, she felt they weren’t ‘satisying’ enough for her. 

Speaking to ES Magazine, she said: ‘I am deeply grateful for the work in Potter and indeed Downton but it wasn’t what you’d call satisfying, I didn’t really feel I was acting in those things.’

Outside of those franchises, her most recent credits include A Boy Called Christmas (2021) and The Miracle Club (2023).

James Coburn – Mr. Crisp

James Coburn played Mr. Crisp, the school administrator who has threatened the school Deloris and her nun friends Sister Act 2. Coburn died from a heart attack at age 74 in 2002

James Coburn played Mr. Crisp, the school administrator who has threatened the school Deloris and her nun friends Sister Act 2.

During the 1990s, Coburn went on hiatus from Hollywood after suffering from deblitating arthritis.

Sister Act 2 was part of his comeback as well as the hit film The Nutty Professor (1996). 

He then went on to star in Affliction (1997) and even won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for playing abusive father Glen Whitehouse in the film.

‘Some of them you do for money, some of them you do for love,’ he said in his acceptance speech at the time. ‘This is a love child.’

His last credits were Intrepid (2000) and American Gun (2002) before he passed away in 2002.

Coburn died from a heart attack at age 74.

 ‘There’ll never be another like him,’ the actor’s manager, Hillard Elkins said to The Guardian at the time. 

‘When we were kids, he and I and Steve McQueen hung out together. Those two made an impression on generations past, present and future.’

He added: ‘He was very happy, very calm. We have lost a great star, a fine actor and a man with a marvellous sense of humour.’

Wendy Makkena – Sister Mary Robert

Wendy Makkena played the peppy nun Sister Mary Robert in both Sister Act and Sister Act 2. She is still acting to this day and even though she’s still in the industry, she isn’t just an actor. She is also a teacher and entrepreneur who owns Ruby Rockets Snacks

Wendy Makkena played the peppy nun Sister Mary Robert in both Sister Act and Sister Act 2. 

Sister Act was Makkena’s first major role and she went on to have a succesful career afterward.  

She starred in the hit film Airbud in 1997. Then, she tackled TV.

Both her shows Oliver Beene (2003-2004) and Listen Up with Jason alexander (2004-2005) only lasted one season.

The same was true for her TV series The Mob Doctor (2012-2013).

She is still acting to this day. Some of her recent credits include A Beautiful Day in the Nieghborhood (2019), Spiked (2021) and Rabbit Hole (2023).

Even though she’s still in the industry, she isn’t just an actor.

She is also a teacher and entrepreneur who owns Ruby Rockets Snacks. 

Lauryn Hill – Rita Wilson

Lauryn Hill appeared as Rita Wilson in Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit but she is much better known for her musical career but she is much better known for her musical career

Lauryn Hill appeared as Rita Wilson in Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit but she is much better known for her musical career. 

Five years after Sister Act 2, she released her hit album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.

To this day, it remains her one and only album. During an appearance on the 500 Greatest Albums podcast, she explained that there was too much pressure and the music studio never came to her about a followup album. 

‘The wild thing is no one from my label has ever called me and asked how can we help you make another album, ever…ever,’ she told the podcast. ‘Did I say ever? Ever!’

She added: ‘After the Miseducation, there were scores of tentacled obstructionists, politics, repressing agendas, unrealistic expectations and saboteurs everywhere.’

‘People had included me in their own narratives of their successes as it pertained to my album, and if this contradicted my experience, I was considered an enemy.’

While she recorded her MTV Unplugged performance in 2002, it wasn’t well-received by critics.

Five years after Sister Act 2, she released her hit album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

To this day, it remains her one and only album. During an appearance on the 500 Greatest Albums podcast, she explained that there was too much pressure and the music studio never came to her about a followup album

She was also met with backlash in 2003 Hill for condemning pedophilia in the Catholic Church during a concert at the Vatican. 

Her career began to fall off at that point and she stopped performing.

During this time, she separated from Bob Marley’s son Rohan Marley, ending their 15-year relationship.

The two had five kids together: Zion, 26, Selah, 24, Joshua, 21, John, 20, and Sara, 15.

While speaking of their breakup with Open Magazine, Marley said: ‘I feel sad that I loved her so much and I faltered in expressing it to her somehow. 

‘It was my fault that she did not understand how I felt, and it was sad that we did not work out in that relationship sense. I was heartbroken for a long time.’

Later, in 2013, Hill served three months in prison for tax evasion.

Now, however, Hill is ready to make her comeback.

In 2023, she announced she was going back on tour to celebrate the 25th annviersary of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

In 2023, she announced she was going back on tour to celebrate the 25th annviersary of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. 

In a news release announcing the tour, Hill opened up about the iconic album and its lasting impact.

While announce the tour, she said in a press release: ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is and was a love song to my parents, my family, my people, my musical and cultural forebears, my teachers, my loves, my Creator. I wrote love songs and protest songs — (still love songs) about the subjects and interests that inspired and moved me.’

‘I was confident that what inspired me would resonate with an audience that had been led to believe that songs of that kind could only live in the past.

‘I loved music, I loved people, I truly felt grateful to God for my life, and genuinely blessed to have a platform where I could share wisdom and perspective through music.

‘I felt a charge to challenge the idea that certain kinds of expression and/or certain kinds of people didn’t belong in certain places. I loved showing what could work or happen provided there was imagination, creativity and LOVE leading the way.’

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