Talk To Me Prequel Film Based On Opening Scene Has Already Been Shot
In the spirit of fellow A24 horror filmmaker Ti West, "Talk To Me" directors Danny and Michael Philippou have just revealed to The Hollywood Reporter (via Bloody Disgusting) that they already have a whole prequel to their new hit movie locked and loaded. The filmmaking siblings behind the terrifying new seance flick told THR that they've already completely shot a screen life movie about the first possessed character audiences meet in the movie, Sunny Johnson's Duckett.
"We actually shot an entire Duckett prequel already," Danny Philippou told the outlet. "It's told entirely through the perspective of mobile phones and social media, so maybe down the line we can release that." It's unclear at this point whether the film is another feature or a short, but it sounds like it'll follow in the footsteps of movies like "Unfriended" and "Searching" by telling poor, doomed Duckett's full story through on-screen media.
The Philippou brothers seem to be implying that there aren't official plans in place yet for distribution on the "Talk To Me" prequel, but A24 would be silly not to pick it up after the flagship film's impressive opening weekend. The movie raked in $10 million against a reported $4.5 million production budget last weekend, immediately skyrocketing up the indie distributor's list of biggest box office openings. The only other A24 film to gross more than "Talk To Me" in its first days (per ComicBook.com) is "Hereditary," a movie that the extremely dark new horror film has been favorably compared to.
The prequel digs into the story of the previous owner
If you've already seen "Talk To Me," you'll likely remember Duckett as the previous owner of the cursed hand that derails the lives of the film's central friend group. Though the film's cold open is horrifying, the circumstances around it are never fully explained. As much as I hate to encourage more horror franchises when original horror tends to be so much more satisfying, I have to hand it (pun intended) to the Philippous — the "Talk To Me" premise seems like fertile ground for more horror stories in the same vein. Danny agrees, telling THR, "While writing the first film, you can't help but write scenes for a second film."
"Talk To Me" is the first feature by the Philippou twins, but they've been making horror videos for years on Youtube via the channels RackaRacka and Left On Red. Their full-length debut has been heralded as a singularly scary experience, with /Film's Chris Evangelista praising its "creepy, spooky, bloody action" and calling its more graphic elements "a shock to the system" in his Sundance review. In addition to their prequel, the filmmakers also reportedly have a "Street Fighter" film in the works.
"Talk To Me" is now in theaters.