Movies
Jessica Rothe Talks Potential ‘Back to the Future’-esque ‘Happy Death Day’ Sequel
What made last year’s Happy Death Day such a blast was primarily the hugely entertaining performance of star Jessica Rothe, who sold the whole concept wonderfully. The film, made on a budget of just $4.8 million, ended up grossing over $100 million worldwide, making it one of the most successful slasher films of all time.
And you know what happens when slashers make a whole lot of money.
As it turns out, director Christopher Landon has an idea for a potential Happy Death Day 2, which would see Rothe reprising the role of Tree Gelbman!
“It’s great!” Rothe said of Landon’s idea, teasing it in a chat with Collider. “I like it because a lot of times with horror movies, if there’s a sequel, it’s almost a repeat, with different actors and slightly different storylines, but it worked, so you do the same thing again. Chris has done this incredible thing where the sequel, the way he described it to me, elevates the movie from being a horror movie – and I wouldn’t even say it’s just a horror movie because it’s a horror, comedy, rom-com drama – into a Back to the Future type of genre film where the sequel joins us right from where we left off, it explains a lot of things in the first one that didn’t get explained, and it elevates everything.”
Rothe continued, “I was really pleased to know that we weren’t just gonna be pushing all the buttons that people loved the first time, over and over again, ‘cause I think that gets old. I’m really excited to see if it comes to fruition and, if it does, what the final product looks like. I hope we get to do it! I had a ball!”
At this time, a Happy Death Day sequel has not yet been announced.
NEON is hitting the road with Gen Z horror hangout movie It Ends, and it’s coming to theaters August 21. While you wait, check out the brand new official poster down below.
It Ends marks the feature debut by writer-director Alexander Ullom.
“Four recent college grads on a night time drive find themselves stuck on a road that sprawls on forever, with seemingly no end in sight. They are occasionally attacked by stragglers and have to find a routine to plan their rest stops, but after a few thousand miles it all feels the same. Still, they keep on driving, only in the belief something better will come eventually.“
Akira Jackson, Phinehas Yoon, Mitchell Cole, and Noah Toth star.
“This was always a movie that was more about how we live with horror than about the actual horror. I make this joke too much, but I always wanted to see the family in Hereditary give a postgame interview and just be like, ‘Yeah, that was terrifying. That was absolutely terrifying.’ Then, they all die, obviously, but like they go about their lives. The movie is constantly recontextualizing the things that happen in it,” Alexander Ullom previously told BD.
Meagan Navarro wrote in her 4-star festival review for Bloody Disgusting, “It Ends captures a universal fear, that anxiety-inducing transition into full-blown adulthood where we’re all expected to become responsible contributors to society. It’s a lot of pressure with no clear guide. As such, it runs through every emotion that comes with that journey.”
Alexander Ullom is already a filmmaker to watch; the newcomer was recently tapped to helm 4 X 4: The Event, which is being described as Battle Royale meets Saw meets Climax.
You must be logged in to post a comment.