With the release of Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman, Neil Gaiman has once again left us all wanting for more renditions of his work. The English author is best known for his numerous fantasy novels and his love for making small connections across his books (kind of like a mini-universe). Still, there’s one story, in particular, fans are longing to see a direct sequel of: Coraline.
First published in 2002, Coraline is a dark fantasy and follows its titular character as she moves into a new home—that oddly contains a door that leads to a parallel (and much scarier) alternate universe where everyone has black buttons for eyes. The book was turned into a much beloved and highly acclaimed stop motion film directed by Henry Selick, which starred actress Dakota Fanning as the voice of Coraline. It also went on to be nominated for both an Oscar and a BAFTA, and almost two decades later, fans are left still hoping for more.
Will there be a ‘Coraline 2’?
Unfortunately, despite rumors swirling on the internet of a sequel being in the works, Gaiman himself has categorically denied any hopes of a follow-up.
He explains in another tweet precisely a year after that straightforward “No” that there would be no point in revisiting Coraline if it can’t top the original.
“What I’ve always said is that I wouldn’t do a Coraline 2 unless I could come up with a story that was as good as Coraline 1. And so far I haven’t come up with (anything)…Actually, as good or better because you don’t want to do, you just don’t want to do one of those sequels that sort of feels like a made for video sequel. If you’re gonna do something, it needs to be a Toy Story 2 or The Godfather Part 2 level sequel where you’re actually upping your game. So I absolutely wouldn’t rule it out, but would absolutely want to go ‘Okay, that is the thing that is just even cooler than Coraline,'” the writer further explained in an exclusive interview last August with Comicbook.com.
This latest statement coincides with director Selick’s own recent statements regarding possible sequels. Speaking to Screen Rant, on the set of his upcoming flick Wendell & Wild, Selick didn’t entirely shut the door to the possibility of a sequel. He shares, “People have always wanted a sequel for Nightmare and Coraline. If there’s a good story, it might be worth doing. But too frequently, sequels are just a remake of the first film with some mild changes.”
And as much as we’d love to see a Coraline sequel ourselves, both Selick and Gaiman have a great point. Besides, it isn’t like this is the last we’ll be seeing either of their work.
Good Omens 2
Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s hilarious novel, of the same name, never got an official sequel. However, its equally outstanding TV adaptation, courtesy of Amazon Prime, has been confirmed to be making a comeback. The hit series has received the same amount of stellar reviews—and stars Michael Sheen and David Tennant as our favorite (and chaotic) angel-demon duo. Its first season pretty much ends the same way as the book does, and with no official trailer as of yet, we can only speculate where the second series will take us. It’s been confirmed that as of this writing, filming has already wrapped, so it’s only a matter of time before we finally get an official first glimpse.
In a statement confirming the renewal of the show for another season, Gaiman discussed his and the late Pratchett’s process on working on the novel. He shared, “It’s 31 years since Good Omens was published, which means it’s 32 years since Terry Pratchett and I lay in our respective beds in a Seattle hotel room at a World Fantasy Convention, and plotted the sequel. I got to use bits of the sequel in Good Omens — that’s where our angels came from. Terry’s not here any longer, but when he was, we had talked about what we wanted to do with Good Omens, and where the story went next. And now, thanks to BBC Studios and Amazon, I get to take it there.”
He goes further and even drops a little hint: “There are so many questions people have asked about what happened next (and also, what happened before) to our favorite Angel and Demon. Here are the answers you’ve been hoping for. We are back in Soho, and all through time and space, solving a mystery, which starts with an angel wandering through Soho, with no memory.”
The Graveyard Book
The Graveyard Book is another classic Gaiman novel (it’s my personal favorite) that’s long been in development hell but has finally been confirmed to be moving ahead with Walt Disney Studios. As per Deadline, Marc Forster is set to direct and will be joined by Renée Wolfe and Gil Netter under 2Dux2. Forster and Wolfe previously worked together on Christopher Robin.
The 2008 novel is the recipient of several important literary accolades and follows the story of a young boy called Bod (short for “Nobody”) who is raised by ghosts and lives in a—you guessed it—graveyard. Disney first acquired rights to the book back in 2012. This was initially supposed to be another endeavor with Selick before he exited production and was replaced by Ron Howard. Several screenwriters were also attached to the project, and for the longest time, Graveyard was left in development limbo. Hopefully, this time, we’ll finally see a great output.
Wendell & Wild
As previously mentioned, Selick has an upcoming feature entitled Wendell & Wild. Set to release just in time for Halloween, on October 28th, the film will follow a pair of demon brothers, and features a macabre carnival called the Scream Fair. The two cross paths with a young orphan named Kat, and together, they set out to find a way out of their troubles. Its cast includes comedy duo Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele as the titular characters, Lyrics Ross as Kat Elliot, Angela Bassett, and James Hong. They are joined by Sam Zelaya, Tamara Smart, Seema Virdi, Ramona Young, Vhing Rhames, and Michele Mariana.
(featured image: Laika)
