It’s been a while since we’ve heard aboutHansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2. Thesequelwas announced shortly afterHansel & Gretel: Witch Huntersproved to be a hit way back in 2013. But there has been no mention of it in the press over the last year. That changes today, asThe Tracking Boardreports that a director has been found. AndJeremy RennerandGemma Artertonwill return to rid the world of evil fairytale forces yet again.
Paramount Pictures is moving forward on Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2 with acclaimed French directorBruno Aveillan. He replaces original directorTommy Wirkola. Many believed that the sequel had fallen into dire straights whenTommy Wirkolaannounced that he wouldnot be returningto the director’s seat. The sequel is said to be getting ‘reworked’ to fall in line withBruno Aveillan’s own personal vision. A source close to the project says that Paramount is hoping to pump a little more ‘excitment’ into the franchise.
WhileTommy Wirkolahad done some work on a sequel script, it’s believed that the studio is completely reworking the screenplay forHansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2. No specific plot points have been announced. It is known that themain storywill once again follow the witch-hunting brother and sister duo Hansel and Gretel. This time, they will be going against an even bigger threat that must be vanquished to save mankind.
Beau Flynn will return to produce through his Flynn Picture Co, along with Kevin Messick, Will Ferrell, and Adam McKay, who are returning to produce through their Gary Sanchez Productions banner. Ashley Brucks, Gabby Canton, and Elizabeth Raposo are overseeing the project for Paramount. While the originalHansel & Gretel: Witch Hunterswasn’t exactly a hit with critics, it did find an audience amongst horror aficionados and action fans, pulling in an impressive $226 million worldwide.Tommy Wirkolawas immediately tasked with writing a second script once the studio saw it had what could become a very lucrative franchise on its hands.
Many fans were disappointed whenTommy Wirkoladropped out of the project. And it was speculated thatJeremy RennerandGemma Artertonmay have become too popular to return, with both securing a number of new projects that quickly filled up their schedule. That no longer appears to be the case.Hitman: Agent 47writerMichael Finchis responsible for the new script. No production start date has been locked down, and the sequel doesn’t yet have a release date.
Bruno Aveillanmay seem like an odd choice for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2, as he isn’t usually attracted to genre fare of this sort. Some consider him one of today’s prominent contemporary artists, and he is known for his photography, having worked along such established stars asMonica Bellucci,Rachel Weisz,Milla Jovovichand others. He has directed a number of internationally acclaimed ads for top brands such as Louis Vuitton, Audi, Nike, Lexus, Nintendo, Coca Cola, Perrier, Lexus, Nissan, Samsung, and Jaguar. He is a brilliant visual artist whose work has been featured in numerous international galleries. Before Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2, he was set to make a completely different fairytale themed movie at Universal that would have put a new spin on Cinderella. That film was canceled. But now he’ll get to reimagine a different sort of fairy story. One that will be quite a bit more bloody and violent. We won’t ask you what you think, cause you probably don’t know who this is.
