Over 15 years after a disastrous theatrical run, Jennifer’s Physique is probably going getting a sequel.
Director Karyn Kusama just lately confirmed that screenwriter Diablo Cody is actively engaged on the follow-up, and based mostly on her pleasure, the challenge would possibly seize the identical chaotic power that turned the unique into an unlikely feminist horror basic.
“I do know she’s engaged on it proper now, and I am very excited to listen to what comes of it,” Kusama mentioned in a current interview with Deadline. “I do know among the bones of it, so I am not going to provide something away, nevertheless it sounds enjoyable and loopy like the primary movie. And I’ve little question that Diablo will do one thing completely unimaginable with it.”
Jennifer’s Physique follows two highschool associates, one among whom is possessed after a rock band performs a violent ritual on her. She returns from the useless with a brand new lust for the blood of boys, leaving her good friend Needy choosing up the physique elements.
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The timing feels proper for a return to Satan’s Kettle, Minnesota.
When the movie premiered in 2009, it barely grossed $31 million worldwide on a modest $16 million price range.
Critics dismissed it as tonally confused, unsure what to make of its quirky dialogue and themes, and audiences principally stayed away.
The studio marketed the movie nearly solely on Megan Fox’s intercourse attraction, pitching it to younger males regardless of Kusama and Cody creating one thing meant for extra various audiences.
There is a well-known TIFF presser during which Fox tried to border the movie appropriately, regardless of what the studio was pushing.
“If I have been to make use of my speaking factors from the studio, I’d name it a ‘horny thriller with a depraved humorousness,'” she mentioned with some sarcasm. “However I believe that it is a comedy with horror components, nevertheless it’s not a daunting, scary film.”
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That disconnect between intention and execution doomed the movie on the field workplace.
Over the previous decade and a half, Jennifer’s Physique has undergone a cultural reassessment and is now a cult favourite.
What as soon as appeared like camp now reads as pointed commentary on feminine friendship, bodily autonomy, and the exploitation of girls. The movie’s queer subtext shines.
The sequel chatter has been constructing for months. Amanda Seyfried teased the challenge at a Toronto screening of her movie Seven Veils earlier this yr, telling followers with pointed winking, “I believe we’re making one other one.”
She later instructed Selection that Fox’s involvement is non-negotiable, saying, “I am not doing it with out her.”
Kusama’s involvement stays unclear, although her consciousness of the script’s growth is promising. She hasn’t directed a function since 2018’s Destroyer, spending current years as an government producer on Yellowjackets.
The problem for any sequel might be navigating modified expectations. In 2009, a movie this overtly fascinated with feminine rage and poisonous friendship felt alien to many viewers. At this time, these themes are extra acquainted in up to date horror.
To not point out, Jennifer technically died within the first movie, and Needy was institutionalized with newfound supernatural powers. However resurrecting a horror baddie is never a problem, so we’ll simply should see.
Tell us if you happen to’d watch the sequel.
