David F. Sandberg, the director best known for his work in the Shazam! Films and Annabelle: Creation, has addressed a possible sequel for one of his best movies. The film is Lights Out, the horror blockbuster Sandberg made his debut with in 2016. The film was hugely successful, grossing $149 million, and the critical reception was stronger than expected, earning a “Certified Fresh” label and 74% on Rotten Tomatoes. Although Warner Bros. Pictures announced the development of a sequel at the time, the project never came to fruition. However, according to Sandberg himself, there’s still that the switch will be flipped to “on” when it comes to Lights Out 2.
The director recently appeared at Midnight Fest, where he also addressed his upcoming movie in the Amityville franchise. As reported by Bloody Disgusting, the director, who is also behind this year’s video game adaptation of Until Dawn, opened up about the chances of making Lights Out 2. He said that there was “a version of a sequel” at one stage, but if he had to make a follow-up, he wouldn’t pursue the original idea because of the original actor’s age:
“There’s a chance there could be a sequel. We’ll see. I don’t know how much I should say, because it could still happen!
We did have a version of a sequel which it wouldn’t be if we do it now. Well, some of it might be. But that one took place shortly after [the original], but now Martin’s not a kid anymore, so it would have to take place, like, 10 years later.”
Although Sandberg didn’t confirm the development of Lights Out 2, his comments still offer some optimism. When asked about what other movie he would like to do next, the Until Dawn director expressed interest in an entirely different genre: “I would like to do sci-fi, especially more grounded sci-fi, not necessarily space battles and things like that. That’s still a goal. I would love to do something like Event Horizon, where it’s like space horror. Not specific IPs.”
‘Lights Out’ Was Inspired By the Viral Short of the Same Name
In 2013, the internet hosted a viral sensation known as Lights Out. It was a short feature, only three minutes long, but a highly effective scare (check it out above!). In the short, a woman is disturbed by the feeling that something is watching her. After climbing into bed, and still feeling distressed, she covers herself, only to find something suddenly turning out the lights.
Sandberg produced the film as part of the Bloody Cuts Horror Challenge, a film festival where he won the Best Director award. When it was posted on YouTube and Vimeo, it went viral, with fans all over the world praising the director’s clever approach to classic horror tropes. It also drew the attention of Hollywood executives. One of them was The Conjuring‘s James Wan, who expressed his support after reaching out to Sandberg and hearing the director’s treatment for a feature film expansion. Produced via Wan’s company, Atomic Monster, Lights Out became a reality a few years later, giving Sandberg the opportunity to enter the Hollywood spotlight.
- Release Date
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July 22, 2016
- Runtime
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81minutes
