‘Labyrinth’ Sequel Script Finished

TriStar pictures and the Jim Henson Company worked out a deal to bring fans of the cult-classic ’80s film Labyrinth back to the screen, with Evil Dead reboot and Don’t Breathe director Fede Alvarez at the helm. During a recent interview about the project, Alvarez revealed that the script is now done:

Read what he had to say to Fandango:

“I was actually having lunch yesterday with Lisa Henson and we reconnected with that project. We’re very excited about it. It is basically a direct continuation of the first movie many years later, and I can’t tell you much more about it… but we have a script, and we’re very excited about it so we’ll see where that goes. Like always, it takes time and effort to put those movies together because they’re larger than life. But that’s one of the projects that I’m very excited about.”

Labyrinth remains a cult-classic do this day, combining the eccentric musicality of star David Bowie (as the flamboyant “Goblin King”) with the imagination and puppetry magic of Jim Henson. The film starred a young up-and-coming Jennifer Connelly as “Sarah” a teenage girl stuck babysitting her baby brother. When baby bro won’t stop crying, Sarah wishes he would be taken away – but what she doesn’t know is that such wishes are actually heard by the Goblin King, who obliges by stealing the baby boy. Sarah is given thirteen hours to solve a massive labyrinth in the Goblin King’s realm in order to save her brother – or have to explain to her parents how she lost him forever. The film was known for its fantastical world and creatures – as well as its famous musical score (see video above).

These real-time direct sequels to famous or iconic movies seems to be a growing trend in Hollywood – and one that generally results in some better projects than the typical remakes or reboots. Halloween (2018) is currently seeing that approach bring in some big box office returns, with its story set 40 years (real time span) after John Carpenter’s original film. By ignoring all of the other franchise sequels and reboots, Halloween (2018) has effectively cleared out a cluttered continuity, and opened up the door to a more exciting future. The Star Wars sequel trilogy has already made billions of dollars by picking up in real time, decades after the events of the Original Trilogy; the Terminator franchise is also getting in on the act, with the upcoming Terminator 6 picking up decades after the events of T2, complete with an aged Linda Hamilton making her returns as Sarah Connor.

Hopefully, this new take on Labyrinth is similarly successful. For now, Alvarez’ street cred remains strong when it comes to handling updates on beloved films (see: Evil Dead).