Not long ago, we reported on a third sequel for Gremlins that was being worked on by original screenwriter Chris Columbus. However, the film doesn’t really show any actual signs of getting off the ground, and Joe Dante — who directed the first two Gremlins movies — thinks he knows why.
While admitting that he’s not involved at all in the planned sequel, Dante does have some insight as to why its production is so plagued. Here’s what the director had to say about the franchise in a new interview with Forbes:
“I probably have less information to give you than anybody because I am not involved with it, I don’t control the material, it’s reverted back to Chris Columbus who wrote the script for the first movie. They have plans to do something, but what Chris wants to do may not be what Warner wants to do, and it’s not just Warner it’s also a lot of other people like Amblin and Steven Spielberg — everyone has to agree on what they want to do and at this point nobody is going to figure that out. I think the reuniting of the cast is highly unlikely. Perhaps a Gremlins prequel might be something they will do but I don’t know as I was not asked to be involved.”
Basically, Dante is saying he doesn’t think the movie will get made because the parties involved — Columbus, Warner Bros., and executive producer Spielberg — will never come to an agreement about what the film should be. We already know what Columbus wants (and we happen to agree with him): A darker sequel more in line with the original film that features mostly puppets. That’s a decidedly old school and financially risky approach, and we’re guessing Warner is far more interested in a family friendly, CGI reboot that could spawn a “cinematic universe.” Spielberg is the wildcard here, but odds are at this stage in his career he’s more likely to side with the studio.
We’re hoping that Dante is wrong — he said himself that he doesn’t have much information — but at this point, we’ll be very surprised if Columbus’s dark, puppet-filled Gremlins 3 (which might even feature the death of Gizmo!) ever makes it to cinemas.
