Posted in: Movies, Warner Bros | Tagged: film, horror, lights out, lights out 2

Lights Out Director Discusses the 2016 Film's Potential Sequel

The director of the popular 2016 horror movie Lights Out is explaining why the film's potential sequel idea now needs to be revised.

Published Fri, 08 Dec 2023 06:48:07 -0600

by Aedan Juvet

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Article Summary

Lights Out's awaited sequel must rethink its plot due to cast aging.
Director David F. Sandberg hints at a new family facing the darkness.
Original cast could return as 'experts' to aid in the ghostly crisis.
Fans ponder if a Lights Out sequel aligns with the genre’s evolution.

The 2016 horror flick Lights Out managed to earn close to $150 million at the box office by tapping into a fairly timeless fear of being in the dark – which earned the film confirmation that a sequel would be coming. However, seven years later, fans are still waiting.

Fortunately, a recent screening of the film offered a small update on the sequel, which suggests that although there's a need to reimagine the plot, there's also a small sliver of hope that remains. So why exactly would the first plans for a sequel need to be revised?

Lights Out Director Offers a Small Update on the Status of a Sequel — Lights Out | Warner Bros. Pictures

Lights Out Director Says Original Sequel Plans Would Now Need to Be Retooled

According to Collider, filmmaker David F. Sandberg recently talked about his original plans for Lights Out 2 during a screening of the first film. While the director does note that these original sequel plans aren't possible anymore (due to the age of the film's youngest star), we learned that there's still something that could bring back a few familiar faces if the sequel does gain momentum anytime soon. Sandberg tells the audience, "In that [early sequel] draft, Martin was still young, and he's not young anymore. He's like a man now, you know."

The horror filmmaker then continues, "No, but she was sort of attacking a new family, but then this cast got involved to sort of help out with that. Because, I mean, you kind of have to do that. Because the fun thing with a horror movie is the discovery when the haunting starts, and you don't know what's going on. So, if she just comes back to this cast, like, 'Well, yeah, we know who Diana is. We've dealt with her before.' So if you have a different family at first, then they can go through all that, but then you can have this cast come in and sort of, you know, be the experts to help defeat."

Honestly, it still feels like there's still plenty that can be done with another entry or two. But considering the time that's passed and the genre's current landscape, do you still believe that Lights Out 2 is worth pursuing?

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