The possibility of The Guest 2, a sequel to the 2014 cult classic horror film starring Dan Stevens, got a new update from the film's original writer.
The Guest followed Stevens' David, who visits the Peterson family in New Mexico under the guise that he was friends with their son, a recently deceased soldier. It doesn't take long for Maika Monroe's Anna to discover that David is exactly an escaped military experiment––an unstoppable killing machine.
Even worse, with his identity compromised, David has no choice but to protect his secrets, leading to a deadly rampage.
While a proper sequel is not officially in the works, The Guest director Adam Wingard confirmed that the idea of a continuation has been discussed by writer Simon Barrett, potentially even as a limited series.
What's the Status of The Guest 2?
While promoting his latest film, Azrael (where he explained some of the film's twists), and speaking to The Direct's Russ Milheim in an exclusive interview, The Guest writer Simon Barrett commented on the odds of The Guest 2 ever releasing,
"The honest truth," the writer shared, is that he and original director Adam Wingard "talk about a [The Guest] sequel every other week:"
"Yeah, I mean, the honest truth is, [director] Adam [Wingard] and I talk about a ['The Guest'] sequel probably every other week; it comes up, and we'll just talk about it for a little bit. Look, a lot of things have changed since we made 'The Guest.' And I think we don't really know what that would be, but it is something that we talk about."
"I'm a little more reluctant than Adam is," the writer admitted, adding how they originally thought "the movie was a total failure:
"I mean, I think, from my perspective, I'm a little more reluctant than Adam is, just because I'm so I think precious about the fan base that 'The Guest' has developed since it came out, where we kind of thought the movie was just a total failure, initially, both kind of critically and certainly financially. And since it's gone on to develop this kind of fan base and cult following..."
Barrett expressed how he "[doesn't] want to do anything to spoil that" and that living up to whatever fans might imagine a sequel to be could be difficult to live up:
"I really don't want to do anything to spoil that because the idea that a fan of 'The Guest' might have of what 'The Guest 2' could be, that's a hard thing to live up to. You know, what people might have in their imagination about the continued adventures of Dan Stevens' David and Maika Monroe's Anna... So, I don't know. It is something we talk about all the time... We will only do it if we feel really like we're not going to screw it up, and the circumstances are perfect."
What Could The Guest 2 Be About?
Sure, The Guest 2 may seem like a questionable business decision. After all, the first film only made back $2.7 million of its $5 million budget––but it's still more popular now than ever before.
A sequel also wouldn't be that expensive of a movie to make, so odds are, with its popularity, it is more likely to profit than the original was.
As for what fans can expect in The Guest 2, a direct continuation of the first would be an obvious choice. Perhaps Maika Monroe's Anna has been on the run ever since she saw that David lived following the events of the original movie.
However, if it takes place in real-time (10 years after The Guest), it's hard to imagine the unstoppable killer failing to find Anna for so long.
Since Anna understands that David is the product of an experiment outside of his control, it would be interesting to see her try to deprogram him, saving his life and free will.
Another angle the creatives could take would be to make it a prequel, exploring what exactly happened to Dan Stevens' David and all of his fellow acquaintances. However, this might require some recasting, as Stevens might be too old to play his younger self, and Lance Reddick (who played Major Richard Carver) sadly passed away early last year.
The Guest can now be purchased online.
