The 1996 release, The First Wives Club, introduced viewers to three women: Brenda (Bette Midler), Annie (Diane Keaton), and Elise (Goldie Hawn), who have all been left by their husbands for younger women. They go on a quest to find reparations, but they end up creating an organization for women who have been abused.
Hugh Wilson directed the film. Fans have always commented on how it had a city feel. And in light of the film’s 25th anniversary, fans may be wondering: Where was The First Wives Club filmed?
‘The First Wives Club’ Paramount’s sister network BET was the one to give it a new reboot.
Per Deadline, the cult-classic film was set to return for 10, 30-min episodes on Paramount Network in April 2018. Girl’s Trip writer, Tracy Oliver, was chosen to write and executive produce the series.
The series is based in New York City but follows diverse women who band together as their marriages fall apart.
A First Wives Club TV series reboot was originally developed with Karen Rosenfelt at TV Land. Keith Cox, president, Paramount Network, TV Land, and CMT, picked it up for a pilot.
TV Land ultimately passed on the pilot, and the project moved to Paramount Network. Deadline shared that Paramount reevaluated the series and moved it to their sister network, BET, in Nov. 2018.
Tracy decided that the reboot should be based on African-American leads. Jill Scott and Ryan Michelle Bathe were their choices. Michelle Buteau was also involved. BET agreed.
“We are thrilled that Tracy Oliver and Paramount Television’s First Wives Club will be coming to BET Networks,” The company released a statement.
The company continued, “We have been big fans of Tracy, the project, and its incredible cast all along. The concept she has for the series fits perfectly with our programming strategy of character-driven content anchored in the Black experience, and it aligns seamlessly with our core audience. We are currently working closely with Paramount Television on Boomerang and are excited to continue working with them on this project.”
The series saw two seasons that were released in Sept. 2019 and July 2021 on BET.
Though The First Wives Club premiered in the late ‘90s, the story continues to live on. We salute female empowerment!