Jake Gyllenhaal plays a different kind of superhero in the dark and twisted sci-fi thriller Donnie Darko, the 2001 cult classic from director Richard Kelly in which a troubled teenager is plagued by visions (of a man in a large rabbit suit) that are intended to manipulate him into saving the universe.

Kelly, who went on to direct two other cult films (Southland Tales and The Box), is not only currently hard at work on a Rod Serling biopic, but also tinkering with a return to the Donnie Darko universe.

Four years ago, Kelly had expressed interest in expanding the Darko lore: “I think there’s something much bigger and more ambitious to do in that universe,” Kelly explained. “It’s big and expensive and I think there’s time to get to that.”

In a new interview, Kelly did reveal that there’s been significant progress on a new Darko story.

“Well, I’m probably not allowed to say anything more than there has been an enormous amount of work completed,” he tells Comingsoon. “I’m hopeful that we might get to explore that world in a very big and exciting way. But we’ll see what happens. But there has been a lot of work done. A lot of work has been done.”

You have to speculate that Kelly is thinking bigger than a feature film and quite possibly a Donnie Darko series that would be set within the (tangent) universe(s). The indie film is rich in mythology and could easily be expanded.

We’ll keep you updated as we learn more.