Earlier this fall, horror fans finally got to see the highly-anticipated prequel to the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre with Leatherface. The responses to the film were mixed, yet we shouldn’t expect to get a sequel to the film anytime soon, as the film’s producer revealed that the rights had lapsed and the property would fall into someone else’s hands, potentially to kick-off a new narrative timeline with the familiar villain.
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A fan asked Leatherface producer Christa Campbell about the likelihood of a film that followed this latest installment yet still took place before the 1974 film, with Campbell pointing out, “I loved this film and I’m very proud. Unfortunately because of the time it took to release it we lost the rights sadly… so no .. not from us at least.”
After production on the film wrapped, years passed before the film’s actual release. French filmmakers Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury helmed the project, following their work crafting genre favorites like Inside and Among the Living, yet their interpretation of the iconic American slasher seemingly didn’t fit with the distributor’s ideals. Following a variety of re-edits and re-shoots, Leatherface eventually had a brief theatrical run and VOD release.
The first time the series underwent the reboot treatment was in 2003 with the Jessica Biel-starring Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This interpretation of the iconic horror film was popular enough to earn a prequel in 2006 with Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning. The series then went stagnant until 2013’s Texas Chainsaw 3D, which served as both a sequel and reboot of the original film. The film was a financial success, yet wasn’t strong enough to earn itself a sequel.
The series may have already had one prequel film, but Leatherface was the first attempt to explore the Sawyer family prior to the events of Tobe Hooper’s original film. With the rights to the franchise falling to a different studio or team of producers, there’s a variety of different paths the film could potentially pursue.
The original film inspired three official sequels before getting its first reboot, so whether a new film would follow the events of 1994’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation or create a fourth narrative involving the characters is yet to be seen.
[H/T Twitter, christacampbell]
