Polar Express 2 is Being “Worked Out” Now (Exclusive)

A holiday classic seems to have a follow-up on the way, with Polar Express being in the sights of its producer Gary Goetzman. Goetzman and Hanks re-teamed once again after several successful projects together for Masters of the Air, a war epic coming to Apple TV later in January. However, one of their next endeavors might be revisiting their 2004 Christmas movie. According to Goetzman, it is a project they have their sights on and are trying to get moving despite potential obstacles. 

“Listen, I’d love to,” Goetzman said. In fact, there seems to be a number of titles Goetzman is hoping to revisit with sequels or other forms of follow ups. “I’d love to do a sequel of Where The Wild Things Are. There’s a lot of the things that we’ve done, if it established itself, branded itself, those movies, studios want another one. That’s the way it goes. I’m up for Mamma Mia 3, man. That would be a ball to do right about now. But it becomes, there’s so much involved with, ‘Who’s artistic property would that be? Would that be?’ It’s just not like, ‘Hey, let’s go do another free sailing! So, they all take time and that’s okay because we don’t mind things going slowly. But that is trying to be worked out now, for sure, Polar 2. Yes.”

Polar Express dropped two decades ago, directed by Robert Zemeckis on a script from William Boyles Jr.. The film has since grown into a cultural phenomenon, with references to its animation and story regularly becoming part of conversations in mainstream spotlights and social media comment sections. Despite rumors and speculation, no sequel or prequel has actually popped in the 20 years since its release. The film is based on a children’s book by the same title, written by Chris Van Allsburg in 1985. With the source material not writing out the path forward and ending with its first, already-adapted installment, it is unclear where another Polar Express movie could go.

A major part of the Polar Express legacy is its innovative digital capture style for its animation, resulting in a first-of-its-kind experience back in 2004. With the evolution of filmmaking technology since, it will be interesting to see what Goetzman, Hanks, and others involved take the visuals, as well as the story. While Goetzman has now revealed there is an effort being made to get the Polar Express back on the tracks, Hanks and Zemeckis have never commented on the prospect.

Are you excited to eventually ride with the Polar Express again? Share your thoughts in the comment section! Goetzman’s Masters of the Air premieres on Apple TV on January 26.