Sequel Bits: Billy Bob Thornton On ‘Bad Santa 2;’ Plot Details For ‘Zoolander 2;’ Plus Talk Of ‘Transformers 4’ And ‘Prometheus’
We’ve got a lot of small sequel talk this week, for films fromBad Santa 2toZoolander 2,Transformers 4andPrometheus, aka theAlienprequel. None of it is massively substantial, but for the fans of each film there are nuggets of info that are worth a look.Bad Santafans should definitely hit the jump for some of the most refreshingly honest sequel talk you’re likely to hear.
We’ll kick off withBad Santa 2,for which two screenplays are being written, byJohnny RosenthalandJohn Phillips. Neither script is in yet, but of the general idea of the sequelBilly Bob ThorntontoldThe Playlist,
I’m not worried about doing another ‘Bad Santa’ in terms of my career or anything like that. My only worry is, you know, that movie is pretty darn good. I think if you want to do a sequel, you want to at least be on par with that one, if not better. That’s the worry… You know, we’re probably never going to make one that’s exactly what that first one was.
That’s the sort of realism that is pretty refreshing to read. But he’s got the same hopes for the sequel we do: “hopefully we can get close to the first one… But hopefully the fans with at least get a kick out of seeing the character again, and that’s my hope for it – that people will get a charge out of seeing that character doing his thing again.”
The possibility of aZoolandersequel has grown recently, asBen StillerandJustin Theroux(with whom Stiller wroteTropic Thunder) have written aZoolander 2script. As Stiller promotesTower Heist, he’s talking about Zoolander in additional to appearing on TV as the character. ToTHRhe confirms the plot. The site says,
The story will pick up 10 years after the first film left off and, Derek’s “School For Kids Who Can’t Read Good” has been destroyed, leaving him in charge of its pupil.
Stiller also tells THR that a thirdNight at the Museumis in the works, with an idea for a story in place, but that there are no plans for a fourth Fockers movie. We dodged a bullet there.
The possibility of fourth and fifthTransformersmovies has been discussed recently, with the CEO of Hasbro saying thatthe company is in talkswithSteven Spielberg,Michael Bayand Paramount to make a fourth film, and Baysaying that he’s not part of the talks. Transformers: Dark of the Moon co-star Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has chimed in on the possibility of more films, and she seems to think that both Bay andShia LaBeouf, who has also said he’s done with the series, will be back.
Keeping in mind that actors are often the last to know about what is really going on with a film’s development, the gossip blog on theLA Timeshas an interview with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, saying,
“We’ll see about that,” Huntington-Whiteley told us Monday at the Hollywood Awards, seemingly doubtful about LaBeouf’s statement. Asked if the actor could be persuaded to return for another “Transformers,” she replied: “I think so. He’ll kill me for saying that.”
Here’s the video:
Finally,Rafe Spall, who you can see this week inAnonymous, talks about the relationship betweenRidley Scott’sPrometheusand his landmark 1979 movieAlien. Scott seems to want to distancePrometheusfromAlienjust a bit, despite the fact that they are clearly connected and, title change notwithstanding,Prometheusis still anAlienprequel. Spall says,
[Ridley Scott] directed the first Alien, and this is… I’ve been sent an e-mail about what I’m allowed to say and what I’m not allowed to say and I haven’t read the e-mail. (laughs). It’s out next June, and it’s part of the Alien franchise. I’m in it, and Charlize Theron, Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender. I think fans of the franchise will love it. Alien is one of the best films ever made, and it’s a real buzz to be in a space suit on an ‘Alien’ set with Ridley Scott coming and speaking to you. It’s incredible. That’s why I wanted to be an actor, to be in a space suit on an ‘Alien’ set.
