Wrath Of Becky Sets Up Becky 3, And The Directors Have Lots Of Ideas [SXSW]
Three years ago, the action thriller "Becky" introduced drive-in theater goers to a 13-year-old whose defensive measures against home invaders would put Kevin McCallister in "Home Alone" to shame. Let's just say the eponymous Becky, played by Lulu Wilson, improvises some unorthodox uses for colored pencils as a group of convicts besieges her family's lake house. She's got a blood-covered face and an attack dog named Diego, and you'll see both of those in the sequel, "The Wrath of Becky."
Over the weekend, "The Wrath of Becky," premiered at the 2023 South by Southwest Film Festival, where /Film was on hand to interview Wilson and co-directors Matt Angel and Suzanne Coote. Discussion turned to the possibility of a "Becky" threequel, and while nothing's official yet, there's certainly been talk of one.
"I'm so down, literally, for like, whenever, wherever," Wilson told us. "It doesn't matter what it is, I'll do it, if it's Becky." However, the actress also stressed, "I think the focus right now is just ['The Wrath of Becky'] ... But of course, it is blatantly setting up something."
As for what form "Becky 3" could take, the answer might surprise you. In real life, Wilson is a competitive fencer, and she suggested jokingly, "Becky's on a boat and she's with pirates, swashbuckling Becky!"
Angel added, "There's a lot of opportunity ... because we introduce new genres in the second one, it's really more of an action-comedy-horror film, but the third one has room for another twist." Whether or not that twist walks on a peg leg remains to be seen, but it's worth mentioning that the first "Becky" did see a character donning a makeshift eye patch.
The dream villain for Becky 3
In "The Wrath of Becky," per the SXSW synopsis, Becky has been "living off the grid for two years," but she soon "finds herself going toe to toe against Darryl, the leader of a fascist organization, on the eve of an organized attack."
Lest we forget, "Becky" is the movie that put a swastika on the back of Kevin James' head. It would be an understatement to say "The King of Queens" star was cast against type as a Neo-Nazi. The first film co-starred Joel McHale, another familiar sitcom face from his "Community" days, and now — to play the aforementioned Darryl — "The Wrath of Becky" has roped in yet another comedic actor, Seann William Scott, known for his role as Stifler in the "American Pie" franchise, among other things.
When asked if there's another "funny guy" they'd want to cast for "Becky 3," Lulu Wilson joked, "Don't say it out loud," but Matt Angel wasn't afraid to jinx it: "I'd love to see Neil Patrick Harris," he said. Considering the fact that we've already seen a woman make mincemeat of Harris in "Gone Girl," that seems like strangely appropriate casting. Suzanne Coote agreed, saying, "That reaction is exactly the director's Spidey sense about something. Because you're like, 'Wait a minute, of course!'"
"The Wrath of Becky" just premiered at South by Southwest and does not have a general release date yet, but we'll keep you posted.