After two hefty box office returns, it’s inevitable work on the third Jumanji sequel will begin eventually. When it does, the franchises’ filmmaker suggests most familiar faces will return. In a recent interview with NME, Jumanji director Jake Kasdan “strongly hints” the main cast — both avatars and real-life kids — will return for at least one more outing. “The whole thing, to me, is built on the foundation of those people. The game cast are these brilliant movie stars, these iconic people,” Kasdan says.
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Those brilliant movie stars, of course, include Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black. The kids on the other hand, who play mirror parts in Jumanji’s real world, are portrayed by Alex Wolff, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, and Ser’Darius Blain.
If you’ve seen Jumanji: The Next Level, you’ll know by now the post-credits scene most certainly sets up a third outing, one which seemingly combines the Jumanji world with the real world, much like what happened in the first Jumanji flick. In the post-credits scenes, long-time Kasdan collaborator Lamorne Morris stumbles upon the Jumanji video game, leading some to believe the franchise might have a new face. It would seem Kasdan shot that idea down.
“The thing that’s easy to not fully appreciate in the mix of how they work is that the kids are just brilliant,” Kasdan said. “And Alex [Wolff] in particular just really… he plays that character in such a funny, smart way. He’s quietly a really essential part of it.”
Kasdan himself sat in the director’s chair for Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Jumanji: The Next Level. According to the NME story, he and his team are already working on developing the third Jumanji sequel, which would technically be Jumanji 4.
When we spoke with Jumanji producers Hiram Garcia and Matt Tolmach last December, both hinted a sequel was in the pipeline. “The beauty is the possibilities are limitless,” Garcia said. “I think for us we thought that was a fun way to sprinkle, sprinkle a little history in there and kind of nostalgia and see how the fans respond to it.”
“I mean first and foremost it was a homage,” Tolmach added. “I think it’s fun, the idea that in the last movie you get to sort of breath like, ‘Okay, everything’s going to be fine, and we’re home and we’re safe.’ And the idea that not everything is going to be fine, whatever that means. It’s just a fun way. When we re-tested it, audiences went nuts.”
All three Jumanji movies are now available wherever movies are sold.
