Jason Blum has revealed his desire for each installment of the Happy Death Day franchise to differ in genre. Founded by Blum, Blumhouse Productions has since unleashed a wide range of popular franchises, including Paranormal Activity, The Purge, and the recent Halloween sequel from David Gordon Green. They’ve also produced three Oscar-recognized standalone films, with Whiplash, Jordan Peele’s Get Out, and, most recently, BlacKkKlansman.

Directed by Christopher Landon (Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse) and written by Scott Lobdell, Happy Death Day hit theaters back in 2017. It starred Jessica Rothe as college student Theresa “Tree” Gelbman, who’s brutally killed on her birthday, only to find herself resurrected and reliving the day over and over again until she identifies the killer. Combining the premise of Groundhog Day with the self-aware horror and humor of Scream, the film proved a surprise hit. It went on to gross $122 million at the global box office against a production budget of just $4.8 million. As such, a highly-anticipated sequel, Happy Death Day 2U, was quickly greenlit.

At a press junket for the second installment, Blum, alongside Landon, spoke to CinePOP about the future of the franchise. Landon revealed that ideas are already in place for future outings, which a post-credit scene will apparently tease. The director remained understandably tight-lipped as to what those ideas could be. Blum, however, discussed how the series could avoid franchise fatigue on a technical level. He said:

I’ve never seen a franchise where one movie is a certain genre, and the next movie is a different genre. But that is certainly the case with Happy Death Day and Happy Death Day 2U. And, hopefully, if we make a third one, it’ll be another different genre.

Blum refrains from revealing what genres he has in mind. It is sure to get fans’ minds racing as to where things could go next, however. A western? A dystopian YA fantasy? A musical? Obviously, some genres would require huge stretches of imagination in order to reach and would be a jarring fit alongside the film’s slasher roots. While the sequel does lean somewhat into more science-fiction territory, it slots easily as a sub-genre within the established format. Then again, the addition of sci-fi could ultimately pave the way to more outlandish scenarios. Blum isn’t quite accurate regarding franchises not switching genres from one film to the next. It is, after all, a tactic that has been successfully deployed within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, Marvel has proven it can be effective. It’s certainly a way to avoid the fates suffered by such as the Saw and Final Destination franchises. Whatever the future holds, though, it’s all dependent on how Happy Death Day 2U fares at the box office.

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Source: CinePOP

  • Happy Death Day 2U Release Date: 2019-02-14