Chris Pine responds to whether he will return in The Princess Diaries 3 director. Pine previously starred in 2004's The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, where he played the Genovian Lord Nicholas Devereaux, who became a love interest of Hathaway's Mia Thermopolis.

On the Today with Hoda and Jenna show, Pine shared that "I don't know anything. Call Disney! Honestly, I don't know anything about it. I think it's fantastic." Despite Pine confirming that he is not involved in the sequel and is not privy to its ongoing development, the widespread interest in his return was shared with him, as Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager shared multiple posts from X (formerly Twitter), emphasizing why Pine needs to come back to play Nicholas in The Princess Diaries 3. Check out the clip from the interview below:

What This Means For The Princess Diaries 3

Chris Pine Could Still Be Cast In The Sequel

Even though Pine is not officially part of The Princess Diaries 3 cast yet, the potential remains for him to return. Given that Lim was only recently announced as the director, along with Hathaway also confirming her return, the sequel is still in relatively early stages of development. The rest of the cast still needs to be officially added, which will hopefully include Pine and other familiar faces from the two previous movies.

With Nicholas being a prominent member of Genovian society, his inclusion would be more seamless than the return of some of the non-Genovian characters.

As Mia's love interest at the end of The Princess Diaries 2, it would make sense for Nicholas to still be Mia's partner who is ing her as she rules Genovia. If Mia and Nicholas are no longer together in The Princess Diaries 3, the movie at least needs to address this. The post that confirmed Hathaway's return included her saying "Back to Genovia" in the caption, and with Nicholas being a prominent member of Genovian society, his inclusion would be more seamless than the return of some of the non-Genovian characters.

Our Take On Chris Pine's Comments

There Is Still Hope For His Princess Diaries Return

The Princess Diaries 2 was Pine's first feature film role and helped pave the way to becoming one of Hollywood's most recognizable stars, including Pine's Star Trek movie role. It would be a satisfying full-circle moment to see Pine returning to the role that helped launch his career more than two decades later. Mia's story is the most important in The Princess Diaries 3, but if Nicholas is still part of her life and the next step in her journey, Pine should definitely return to play the charming Nicholas once more.

Source: Today with Hoda & Jenna/X