After many years of a superhero movie onslaught, romantic film lovers have been in the midst of something of a romcom revival over the past couple of years.
The ultimate sign that the romantic comedy is back and better than ever is the return of one of the undisputed queens of the genre – Meg Ryan.
After a long, long break, the star of the likes of When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle will star and direct in a new romcom, due out later this year.
But as luck would have it, this coincides with a milestone anniversary of one of her earlier classics, the 1998 treasure, You’ve Got Mail.
As the beloved favourite turns 25, we celebrate with 25 surprising facts…
1. It’s based on a play
Despite being considered an original romcom classic, the plot is heavily inspired by a 1937 Hungarian play, titled Parfumerie.
2. It’s actually the third film inspired by Parfumerie
And Parfumerie had been adapted twice before for the big screen. The first was The Shop Around the Corner, a 1940 film by Ernst Lubitsch, and later it inspired the 1949 movie musical, In the Good Old Summertime by Robert Z.
3. There’s a reference to one of the earlier films
Eagle-eyed fans will have spotted that Kathleen – the character played by Meg Ryan – runs an independent book shop called The Shop Around the Corner, a reference to the 1940 movie.
4. It was Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks’ third film together
Tom Hanks – who plays Joe Fox – and Meg Ryan struck gold for a third time in this charming reunion. Their previous movies together included Joe Versus the Volcano and Sleepless in Seattle.
5. It was also the second film uniting Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks and Nora Ephron as director
Nora Ephron directed the two leads in Sleepless in Seattle, returning for a second adventure with the pair.
6. Fans were able to read the emails between Joe and Kathleen
A promotional website was active for 20 years - until 2018 - where fans could go online and read the emails sent between Joe and Kathleen.
7. An endearing moment was unplanned
The scene where Joe accidentally closes the door of Kathleen's shop on the balloons was unscripted. Tom Hanks actually did that, and ad libbed the line, "Good thing it wasn't the fish." Nora Ephron thought it was so funny that she kept it in.
8. A famous actor had his role cut
Michael Palin, of Monty Python fame, originally appeared in several scenes. However, his subplot was cut out entirely, and every single one of Palin’s scenes was deleted.
9. Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks actually worked in a bookstore to prepare
The actors went method, working in a bookstore to get some lived experience. They weren’t alone, Heather Burns (who played Kathleen’s employee) also clocked in some shifts at a bookshop.
10. It truly was a different time – Meg Ryan got her first home computer because of the role
To think, there was a time when people didn’t have laptops, tablets and smartphones as standard!
11. Tom Hanks shares a peculiar trait with one of the characters – but not his own
In the film, Kathleen’s first boyfriend – writer Frank – collects typewriters. Interestingly, so does Tom Hanks in real life.
12. It was the first movie to shoot in an iconic New York location
Zabar’s is a convenience store beloved by New Yorkers and referenced in everything from Sex and the City to Will & Grace. But You’ve Got Mail was the first time someone actually filmed on location.
13. Did you spot this future star of Grey’s Anatomy & And Just Like That?
Sara Ramirez might best be known as divisive comic Che Diaz for fans of And Just Like That, but you can see the star in one of their earliest roles playing the checkout assistant who is swayed by Tom Hanks’ Joe into letting Kathleen use her credit card in the cash-only line.
14. A now powerful Marvel studio boss showed Meg Ryan how to use the technology
Kevin Feige is responsible for the all-dominant Marvel machine, overseeing the franchises including The Avengers. But before he reached these dizzying heights, he was a production assistant who had to show Meg Ryan and the crew how to use the computers.
15. 25,000 books were used for the fake Fox Books store
Not only that, Nora Ephron insisted they be stacked in actual sections, as you’d find in a functional book store.
16. It almost had a different name
Originally, because the studio assumed AOL’s legacy greeting of “You’ve got mail” would’ve been trademarked, they operated under the name You Have Mail. However, it turns out AOL didn’t trademark it!
17. There was a real-life ‘Shopgirl’
Unique usernames for emailing and instant messaging was a huge thing when it all first started. Kathleen’s online profile in the movie was Shopgirl, and the studio had to ask the original claimant of that username to relinquish it so it could be used.
18. There was a different ending planned for two of the characters
In the original You’ve Got Mail script, Joe and Kathleen’s ex-partners, Patricia (Parker Posey) and Frank (Greg Kinnear) end up getting together as well.
19. Dave Chappelle got the role thanks to Tom Hanks
The controversial comic plays Tom Hanks’ best pal in the film, and he got the role after initially turning down a chance to star in Forrest Gump. Tom, sensing his disappointment at turning down the Oscar-winning classic, assured him they’d work together somehow. Enter You’ve Got Mail.
20. … And he was allowed to improvise all his lines
It is reported that the comedian was given free reign over his character’s lines, with most of them ad-libbed.
21. Kathleen’s shop is inspired by a real store (which is still open!)
Nora Ephron designed Kathleen’s charming bookstore on Books of Wonder, New York City’s oldest and largest independent children’s bookstore.
22. One factor made some people angry at the time
The prominent inclusion of AOL’s “you’ve got mail” tagline earned the movie some ire.
Rolling Stone even included You’ve Got Mail on its list of the Most Egregious Product Placements in Movie & TV History.
23. It was a huge hit
Romcoms are in their comeback era right now, but they once reigned supreme. You’ve Got Mail beat out the likes of Dreamworks’ Prince of Egypt to top the box office, ultimately grossing over $250M worldwide.
24. One of the cast members hated the love story between Joe and Kathleen
“I was young and really idealistic, and I got a little mad that she ends up with the guy who's putting her out of business," Heather Burns recalled to Vanity Fair. “And Nora said to me, ‘Heather, the older you get, you're gonna realize that things change and there's not very much that you can do about it. And the city changes, and that's just the way it is.’ And as I have gotten older, I realised she was right.”
25. Nora Ephron thought of the movie as a ‘sequel’ to Sleepless in Seattle
Same director. Same romantic leads. Well, it turns out, it wasn’t too much of a coincidence. Nora Ephron’s sister, Delia (who helped write the script), told Vanity Fair that Nora saw the film as a spiritual successor to Sleepless in Seattle.
“Nora always thought of this movie as the sequel to Sleepless. And even though it isn’t the same characters or anything in our heads, it was always going to be for Meg and Tom,” Delia explained to Vanity Fair.
Fancy like watching You’ve Got Mail now? Fans in the UK can stream it on Amazon Prime Video.
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