Sing Street Director John Carney Considered A Sequel, But Here's Why He Won't Make It [Exclusive]
While it may not have been a big financial hit in its day, director John Carney's 2016 musical "Sing Street" has become a true favorite among those who have seen it in the years since its initial release. It's one of those movies that people don't just like, they absolutely love. Its audience has certainly grown, and Carney is seemingly aware of that — so much so that he actually considered making a sequel. But don't get your hopes up: The filmmaker is probably not actually going to do it, and he's got a pretty good reason for that.
/Film's own Ben Pearson spoke with Carney in honor of his new movie "Flora and Son," which is in theaters now before it arrives on Apple TV+. During the conversation, which will be published in full next week, Carney was asked if he considered making a "Sing Street" sequel at any point. Yes, it turns out he has, but in his desire to see new things in the world, he's resisted pulling the trigger on the follow-up. Here's what he had to say about it:
"Yes, I have, but I don't think I will. I think the fun challenge now, having made a bit of TV, the fun challenge of making a film is ending. The brave thing — or not brave, because none of this is brave — but the kind of honest thing to do as a filmmaker is to risk closing the curtains and saying, 'I'm done. I've no more to say. Did you like it? Did I end it right?' That's the challenge. And when you keep on going week and week or in these franchises, or 'Let's just keep going, let's have an origin story.' Yeah, maybe, but the world is not short of stories. There's millions of them there. We don't need to keep reiterating the same stories. I'd rather hear something new."
'It's good not knowing'
"Sing Street" centers on a teen living in Dublin in the '80s named Conor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) who forms a band to impress an aspiring model played by Lucy Boynton. The ending sees the two sailing off with one another to start a new life in London. It's a happy, somewhat surrealistic ending, but one that leaves some lingering questions. Does Conor get a record deal? Do he and Raphina stay together? They're questions that could be answered in a sequel.
"I'm tempted to go to London and find out what those characters are doing," Carney continued in our interview. "It'd be good fun, but I think the film — it just leaves the film on the right note, and it's good not knowing." Speaking with The Verge in 2016, the filmmaker addressed the film's ending, which might further explain why doing a sequel wouldn't be the way to go.
"I don't see it just as a happy romantic ending. I think that's the tone of the piece, but I think it's more like ... they're setting off together, that's true, but I wouldn't say that's some huge relationship that's going to last forever. They're kids. I sort of hope the scene at the end would look a little like a fantasy sequence. You're supposed to wonder where the reality ends and the pop video begins. But people are actually taking it very seriously, and people are presuming it's fully real, which is interesting. That wasn't the intention."
Sometimes it truly is better to let things be. Not everything needs a sequel. Maybe a stage musical was good enough, in this case. That said, if Carney ever changed his mind and it meant we got another soundtrack full of songs like "Drive It Like You Stole It," it'd be tough to be mad about it.
"Flora and Son" is in select theaters now and arrives on Apple TV+ on September 29, 2023.