Escape Room sequel announced: Will it become a franchise?
By Mads Lennon
A few months ago I wrote an article about why Escape Room should become a franchise and now the sequel has officially been announced.
Not too long ago we got news that a Final Destination reboot was officially in the works, and now it looks like Escape Room might become the perfect counterpart franchise to accompany it. With Saw taking a backseat for a while after Jigsaw, it’s about time we had some fresh blood in the mix (no pun intended). A sequel is officially in the works!
I really enjoyed Escape Room. Despite debuting in January, which is typically dead winter month for films, particularly horror, I found it a clever, fun and creative new entry into the genre. Audiences seemed to agree too, since the film made over 1$00 million against a $9 million budget.
The film was about a group of six strangers who are invited to compete in a highly competitive escape room for the chance to win glory and cash. But they quickly realize the stakes in the rooms are higher than they ever could have anticipated as they are forced to fight their way through a myriad of puzzles in the hopes of surviving.
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It starred Deborah Ann Woll (Daredevil, True Blood), Taylor Russell (Lost in Space), Logan Miller (Love Simon), Tyler Labine (New Amsterdam), Jay Ellis (Insecure), and Nik Dodani (Atypical) as the six strangers.
The ending of Escape Room hinted heavily at a potential sequel focusing on the characters of Zoey and Ben (Russell and Miller), with them actually trying to infiltrate the escape room headquarters. We caught a glimpse of the inner workings of the room creation and Escape Room teased an entire evil organization behind the orchestration of these tests around the world.
While we don’t know much yet about the plot of the sequel film, according to Deadline the original director and writer will be returning, the full statement below:
"The studio on Monday set an April 17, 2020 release date for the sequel, which Adam Robitel will return to direct along with returning writer Bragi F. Schut and producer Neal H. Moritz."
I’m hoping Zoey and Ben’s story continues so they can be tied to the original film. Zoey could become the new Sidney Prescott, the sole survivor from film to film. But if they decide to go a different direction and start fresh with a new slate I think that could be a good move as well.
With a young franchise the possibilities and opportunities are plenty ripe with many avenues open to the filmmakers to explore.
Next. Why Escape Room should become the next horror franchise. dark
Are you excited for a sequel to Escape Room? What would you like to see from a follow-up film? What were your favorite moments from the first one? Let us know in the comments!