Sequel Bits: 'Pacific Rim 2', 'Raid 3', 'How To Train Your Dragon 2'

In case you were wondering, yes, Hiccup and Toothless are as cute as ever. A new batch of adorable How to Train Your Dragon 2 images is proof of that. Also after the jump:

  • Watch a behind-the-scenes video for Alien: Isolation
  • Legendary is "open" to a Pacific Rim sequel
  • Universal schedules Ride Along for January 2016
  • Here's how The Raid 3 connects to The Raid 2
  • Could HBO's Girls make the leap to the big screen?
  • Is Matthew McConaughey avoiding Magic Mike 2?
  • Mike Bassett: England Manager is getting sequelized.
  • There's a Silence of the Lambs spinoff coming, sorta-kinda.
  • [Gamespot via Coming Soon]

    It's been a few months since Michael Dougherty announced Trick 'r Treat 2, and Legendary head Thomas Tull confirms it's still in active development.

    We love Trick 'r Treat. It's become a cult favorite and we got together with Mike who had a great idea for the second. We said we definitely wanted to see where Sam heads next. Michael is writing, hopefully we'll be shooting that in the near not-to-distant future.

    Less certain is what's going on with Pacific Rim 2. Though Guillermo del Toro confirmed last year that he was working on the screenplay, he's currently tied up with another project.

    I was literally just with Guillermo on the set of Crimson Peak. We talk about it and have some pretty great ideas. If they come to fruition and we get a great script, then we're open to it. Fans seem pretty passionate about it and working with Guillermo. So, we're open to it.

    [Shock Till You Drop]

    Universal's first Ride Along went so well, they've gone ahead and scheduled another. Director Tim Story and stars Ice Cube and Kevin Hart are all back on board for the sequel, which the studio has now set for release on January 15, 2016. Just as the original was up against The Nut Job at the box office, so will Ride Along 2 be up against The Nut Job 2. [ Jeff Sneider]

    As previously mentioned, the storyline of The Raid 3 will pick up even before The Raid 2 leaves off. At a recent event, director Gareth Evans offered some info on just how the two stories will intersect.

    I do have a concept in mind. If this one is two hours after 'The Raid' finished, 'Raid 3' starts three hours before 'The Raid 2' finishes. So you go back in time a little and then branch off for a different story.

    But while the movies overlap, the productions won't. Evans reiterated that he wants to take a break before getting started on the next installment of the series. "They're going to have to wait a while. I don't want to do it for three years, maybe," he said. [Variety]

    Sex and the City did it, and Entourage is working on doing it right now. Could Girls be the next HBO half-hour to get a feature-length sequel?

    Executive producer Ilene S. Landress isn't ruling it out. "Sure. Why not?" she said. "If Lena [Dunham] and Jenni [Konner] and Judd [Apatow] have something left to say." [Moviefone]

    Matthew McConaughey's sketchy strip club manager Dallas was a highlight of the first Magic Mike. But if a new rumor is to be believed, the character may not be returning for the sequel.

    According to an anonymous source who spoke with a tabloid (so you know how reliable this is), McConaughey "feels that he's done his time" and is no longer interested in stripping down to get roles. Unless, maybe "big money is offered" — but even then, "his role will be drastically smaller than before." [Star Magazine via Celebitchy]

    Well over a decade after Mike Bassett: England Manager first hit theaters, star Ricky Tomlinson has signed on to reprise the role for a sequel. Also returning are director-producer Steve Barron and writers Rob Sprackling and John R. Smith.

    Titled Mike Bassett: Interim Manager, the follow-up will see the screwed up soccer manager being brought on to help with the English national team. The brilliant German head coach already has the team in a good spot, but Bassett's arrival will mess everything up. The movie will shoot this year during the World Cup. [THR]

    This next bit isn't really about a sequel, or even technically a spin-off. But Silence of the Lambs fans may be interested to know that independent producer Joe Lawless is developing a movie about the psychologist of Gary Heidnik, the real-life serial killer who inspired Buffalo Bill.

    Lawless has secured the life rights to doctor Jack Apsche, a Vietnam vet who went on to become a famous psychologist. He worked extensively with Heidnik, serving as an expert witness at his trial and trading letters with him after Heidnik went to prison. Sebastien Bazile will write the script. [Variety]

    And now, let's close on something sweet. DreamWorks has just released a whole bunch of lovely stills from How to Train Your Dragon 2, featuring not just Hiccup and Toothless but Astrid, Stoick, Ruffnut and Tuffnut, and more.

    How to Train Your Dragon 2 flies into theaters on June 13. [Cartoon Brew]