Nia Vardalos Surprised Joey Fatone With Coming Out Gay Storyline In 'Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'

During an appearance on HuffPost Live, Nia Vardalos said that she surprised Joey Fatone with a coming out gay storyline in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2.

The sequel, which comes 14 years after the original, opens Friday.

Vardalos, who wrote and stars in the films, said that Fatone was unaware that his character of cousin Angelo would come out in the sequel.

“I knew that Joey could do it,” Vardalos said. “I wrote it as a surprise for him because I like to challenge the actors in certain ways. The reason I wrote it in is because I feel that with the gay and lesbian issue – it is not their issue, it is our issue. And the more that we speak out for each other's issues, the louder our voices will be.”

She added that Fatone didn't read the script until “a couple of nights before we started” filming.