Elizabeth Perkins Reveals Why There’s Never Been a Big Sequel (Exclusive)

It’s difficult to think of a movie as popular as Big — the 1988 Tom Hanks classic from director Penny Marshall — and not immediately assume that in today’s movie marketplace, the film would have had a sequel. The movie, which transformed Hanks into a household name almost overnight, centered on a boy who wished to be an adult…then woke up the next day to find it had happened. Suddenly, he had to deal with adult issues, and quickly realized that there’s a reason we don’t ask ten-year-olds to do so. The movie has become such a cultural touchstone that, during the production of Shazam!, both star Zachary Levi and director David F. Sandberg told reporters that they had been inspired by it.

Speaking with ComicBook.com in support of Apple TV+’s The Afterparty, Big star Elizabeth Perkins broke down why there was never really a chance to do a sequel to Big, in spite of it being such an iconic film and one of the best sellers of the home video era. 

“No, not once,” Perkins told Chris Killian when he asked whether a sequel was ever batted around. “It was turned into a Broadway musical for a little while and there have been sort of little spinoffs, like I know there was a movie with a small girl who grew up. It was never a movie that Penny Marshall wanted to do a sequel to. She felt like, I told this story, it’s perfect just the way it is, and neither Tom or I was interested in adding to it because it was just a moment in time, and I think it’s perfect because of that.”

That feels like an antiquated idea now, but it was more common in the 1980s. After the massive success of E.T., Steven Spielberg famously toyed with the idea of a sequel — one that would have been darker and more full of lore — but ultimately decided not to go ahead with it. Similarly, while Back to the Future did get two sequels, writer/producers Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis have been fending off questions about sequels and spinoffs for years, going with that same, basic idea that the trilogy is perfect as it is, and any new installments would be subtraction by addition.

In The Afterparty season 2, a wedding is ruined when the groom is murdered and every guest is a suspect. Detective Danner (Haddish) returns to help Aniq (Richardson) and Zoë (Chao) solve whodunnit by questioning family members, star-crossed lovers, and business partners, and hearing each suspect’s retelling of the weekend, each with their own unique perspective and visual style.

The Afterparty is produced for Apple TV+ by TriStar TV and Sony Pictures Television as part of Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s expansive five-year overall television deal. Season 2 is co-showrun by Miller and Tony and Emmy-nominated writer, producer, and performer Anthony King, and both serve as executive producers. Miller executive produces alongside Lord through the pair’s production banner, Lord Miller. Lord Miller’s SVP of Television Aubrey Lee is a producer on the series.

The series returns on July 12 on Apple TV+.