And he called me, and he said: 'Cher, you're doing Mamma Mia. 'My old agent became the head of universal. She was told that she would be accepting the role. 3) Cher was, however, the first and ONLY choice for the role of Ruby Sheridan.Ĭher didn't even have the opportunity to turn it down either. She had to decline because of tour commitments and you know what, thank GOD, because otherwise we might have never been able to witness Christine Baranski doing high kicks on a beach in Greece with a cocktail in hand. There was no sense of, ‘Well I’m not playing someone’s mother.’ They just kind of embraced it.' 2) Cher was originally offered the role of Tanya in the first movie. The fact that she’s playing Meryl Streep’s mother, which she and Meryl found hilarious. Producer Judy Cramer told Vanity Fair: “She could see the fun in that role. Clearly time and space do not exist on the fictional island of Kalokairi. At the time of filming, Meryl was 68 years old and Cher was 71. Everything you didn't know about the Mamma Mia movies.ġ) Cher, who plays Donna's mother Ruby in Here We Go Again, is only three years older than Meryl Streep.
