Grease 2 didn't attain the widespread success of Grease because it didn't follow the original plan for a sequel. The 1978 hit Grease has been one of the most popular musicals ever for decades, and it's easy to see why: the catchy songs, the charismatic characters, the energetic choreography, and the overall theme of unpretentious love that makes the movie stand out from other similar musicals. In an unexpected turn of events, Danny Zuko (John Travolta) and Sandy Olsson (Olivia Newton-John) depart in a flying car at the end of the film, never to be seen again.
Four years later came Grease 2, originally titled More Grease. Danny and Sandy were replaced by two new - but blatantly similar - lovebirds, Michael Carrington (Maxwell Caulfield) and Stephanie Zinone (Michelle Pfeiffer). This time, it's Michael who arrives at Rydell High School as an exchange student from London, while Stephanie is the leader of the Pink Ladies. Naturally, they fall in love and go through a series of challenges that mirror the original film such as coerced personality changes, clashes, and romantic entanglements between cliques, car/motorcycle chases, and a talent show.
Grease 2 was by no means a total failure, as it became a cult hit of its own and gathered a loyal niche following. However, the original plan for the sequel was scrapped before the first movie was even released. Grease teased the return of the Rydell High students to summer school with Coach Calhoun (Sid Caesar) saying "I'll see you in summer school" at the carnival, but Paramount wasn't expecting the first movie to be a cultural phenomenon. So, by the time they sought ideas for a sequel after its success, writer Bronte Woodard had passed away and neither the original composers nor the two main stars would return. Director Patricia Bich then proposed another ill-fated idea for the sequel, with Danny and Sandy running a gas station.
If Paramount had preserved their faith in the project since the beginning, Grease 2 could have answered various interesting questions. For instance, fans still wonder what Grease's ending really meant and what happened with Frenchy's career goals as a beauty therapist. The summer school setting would have also instilled a breath of fresh air into the story while keeping the chemistry between the already established characters, whereas the final product failed to launch Michael and Stephanie as the next power couple. Crucially, the sequel could have explored more of Grease's final message that you control your own fate - an epiphany that came too late for the T-Birds and Pink Ladies to do well in school. Seeing them all trying to fix their academic performance while wrestling with the distractions of summer would have fit perfectly.
Besides, the sequel could have been a solid start for an enduring franchise. Early plans included four films and a TV show, with the third and the fourth film set in the 1960s, perhaps using the counterculture movement as a backdrop to the gang's newer adventures and using the music genres of the era to their full extent. A Summer Lovin' prequel - which is now set for release - could have also come earlier, and who knows how many more Grease titles across all media would have been released by now.
Unfortunately, Frenchy's abrupt disappearance halfway through the movie and the absence of most of the original cast are the most common memories Grease 2 left to the general audience. While certainly not a disaster, the sequel did hinder Grease's chances to expand the original story. Even after Grease: The Rise of the Pink Ladies and Summer Lovin' debut on digital platforms, the chance to see more titles with the original cast is long gone.