Be advised, major plot spoilers for Gretel & Hansel are included below.
Orion Pictures’ dark fairy tale Gretel & Hansel is now in theaters, backed by mostly good reviews, but it’s unclear if a sequel will happen. Nowadays, it’s getting rarer and rarer that original horror films like Gretel & Hansel even get a wide release. While it’s based on a classic fairy tale, it’s far from a straight adaptation, and definitely feels like a unique breath of fresh air in an age with sequels, remakes, and reboots dominating the studio horror landscape.
While not quite as crazy as films like Hereditary or Midsommar - both directed by the rapidly rising Ari Aster - Gretel & Hansel is definitely in that same spirit, seeking to unnerve and creep out the audience over hitting them with lots of jump scares and explicit gore. It’s a character-based horror story, and very much rises and falls on the lead performance of Sophia Lillis as Gretel, who’s thankfully just as likeable and easy to root for here as she was in IT, albeit with a little more of a dark edge going on.
Gretel & Hansel definitely left the door open for a sequel, but will it get one? If so, what might such a sequel look like? Here’s what we think might happen.
Gretel & Hansel 2 Isn’t Confirmed (Yet)
As of this writing, there’s no indication whatsoever whether a sequel to Gretel & Hansel might be in the cards. Considering that the box office outlook for its opening weekend isn’t looking too good, that might well shut the door on a follow-up. That said, director Oz Perkins’ film only cost around $5 million to produce, and is pretty certain to at least make that back soon. If Gretel & Hansel then performs well on home video, a sequel might then become a real possibility.
Gretel & Hansel 2 Release Date
Gretel & Hansel was first announced as being in development by Orion Pictures in October 2018, then moved into production quickly, wrapping principal photography by the end of that year. Reshoots then took place in early 2019, and the final film hit theaters a little less than a year later. The film has a lot of complex and scary visuals, so it’s likely post-production took quite a while. If a sequel gets greenlit in the first half in 2020, early 2022 would seem to be a likely release window.
Gretel & Hansel 2 Story Details
Gretel & Hansel ended with Gretel using her own blossoming magic powers to defeat the witch, burn her alive, and save her younger brother from a similar fate. Gretel then sent Hansel off to live with the carvers, as was the original idea for both children. It appears that Gretel plans to fully allow her powers to manifest, but wants to use them for good, unlike the witch. Her fingers turning black certainly does suggest that things might not be that simple though. A sequel could see Gretel go one of two ways. Either she manages to become a force for good, and uses her abilities to combat another evil force, or she instead falls to the dark side and becomes worse than the witch she slayed.
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