Whoopi Goldberg pays tribute to her late Sister Act co-star Maggie Smith after her death at 89

Whoopi Goldberg is honoring her late “Sister Act” co-star Maggie Smith after her death Friday at the age of 89.      “Maggie Smith was a great woman and a brilliant actress.I still can’t believe I was lucky enough to work with the ‘one-of-a-kind,’” the 68-year-old wrote on Instagram.

“My heartfelt condolences go out to the family … RIP.”Along with her sweet words, Goldberg shared a photo of herself and Smith from the 1992 hit comedy, “Sister Act.” The film follows Deloris Wilson (Goldberg), a lounge singer put in witness protection after witnessing a violent murder.She poses as Sister Mary Clarence after being relocated to a convent in San Francisco and continuously butts heads with Smith’s Mother Superior.The actresses reprised their roles in the movie’s 1993 sequel “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.” In 2020, Disney announced that the franchise would continue with a third installment of “Sister Act,” which will be released on Disney+. In the years since, Goldberg and her fellow castmates, including Tanya Trotter, Wendy Makkena and Kathy Najimy, have shared updates on the project with fans.In June, Trotter revealed that the “Sister Act 3” script has been completed. Though she wasn’t sure she would be in the third flick, the 47-year-old told Entertainment Tonight at the time that she does “know that the script is done.”And yes, the actress wants in.“Anything that Whoopi Goldberg is a part of — ’cause she’s a legend, she’s an icon, she’s my mentor, hero — yes, I would say yes.”Meanwhile, Goldberg has stated that she’d only reprise her role in a potential threequel if Smith did, too. During a 2023 appearance on the British talk show “Loose Women” Goldberg noted that she’s “holding the part of Mother Superior” for the “Downton Abbey” star. “One of the things that I want to make sure I do while I’m here is I want to let Maggie Smith know that I’m holding the pa...