Jodie Foster called her “bestie,” Jamie Lee Curtis, “inventive, fearless, and full of surprises” as the Oscar-winning actress was granted Legends status by Disney.
Foster portrayed a mother and daughter who switch bodies in the 1976 original film adaptation of Freaky Friday. Lindsay Lohan played the same character in the 2003 remake, which starred Curtis as her mother.
During the company’s biennial fan conference D23, Lohan made an appearance on stage to present the prize. She added, “The magic of Jamie Lee Curtis is that she is timeless.”
Foster described Curtis as kind, giving, and an encouraging cheerleader.
Foster went on, “She is creative, fearless, and full of surprises.” She then recalled the day Curtis spoke at her wedding, gave her a Golden Globe, and pushed her hands and feet into cement outside the TCL Chinese Theatre.
When Curtis accepted the Disney award, she broke down in tears. Curtis received an Oscar for her performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once the previous year.
Curtis remarked, “The truth is that legends are created when they are nurtured and educated, not formed.”
Inviting the crowd to “listen to the words, because the truth is, that’s why I am here,” she sang the lyrics of her favourite Disney attraction, the Carousel of Progress, as she wrapped up her remarks.
“At the end of each day, there is a bright, shining, magnificent tomorrow.” Indeed, tomorrow is going to be amazing, huge, and gorgeous, but it’s still only a dream,” she crooned.
“Man begins with a dream, and he pursues it with all of his heart and mind. When that dream materialises, it’s a dream come true for you and me.”
At a previous D23 event, Curtis and Lohan disclosed the title of the Freaky Friday sequel.
Curtis assured fans that Freakier Friday would be “more fun and more emotional,” with the return of Mark Harmon and Chad Michael Murray along with the band Pink Slip, which was lead by Lindsay Lohan’s character in the first movie.
Lohan’s character Anna Coleman has a daughter of her own in the follow-up.
In her introduction, Lohan stated that Curtis “always brings something unique to the role” and that she is “glad to work with a woman that I admire so much and feel so blessed to have Jamie as a friend in my life.”
Based on a novel by Mary Rodgers published in 1972, Freaky Friday will have a sequel that opens in 2025.