Spoiler Warning
Actor and filmmaker Zach Cregger’s bonkers horror film Barbarian has been a sleeper hit at the box office, and fans are already calling for a follow-up movie. Barbarian follows a young woman (Georgina Campbell) who rents an Airbnb only to find that it’s double booked, with a strange man (Bill Skarsgård) already there. What follows are darkly comic and gory twists and turns, some of which are so absurd that viewers are comparing Barbarian to James Wan’s 2021 hit, Malignant.
Barbarian’s shocking mid-film twist and the ending leave the door open for a prequel or a sequel, but unfortunately, director Zach Cregger is in no mood to direct them. Cregger agrees that an amazing idea could entice him to make a sequel, but for now, it’s not in the cards and probably won’t happen in the future either, or so he told Comicbook.com recently.
"So there's a big twist around the 40-minute mark and I always eagerly wait for that moment. It's my favorite moment. Barbarian 2, not for me. Not gonna happen from me. Never say never, I could have an amazing idea tomorrow and be off to the races, but I doubt it."
About the Barbarian prequel, Cregger told The Hollywood Reporter:
"I don't think I'm necessarily interested in a prequel right now. I think it would have to tell the story of Frank [Richard Brake], and I'm personally not interested in making a movie about a man who abducts women. I'm more than happy to have that be the setting for another story like Barbarian is, but I don't want to watch that guy for an hour and a half. I could be thinking about it all wrong. Maybe I'll change my tune, but at the moment, no. There's a sequel I joke about that I would love to watch, which would be The Mother surviving her gunshot and having to integrate into society. She could attend community college and get her learner's permit and get a Tinder profile. That would be fun. I'd watch that movie. I don't know if I'd make it, but I'd love to see it."
Zach Cregger Aspires to Make a ‘Batman-Adjacent’ Movie
Zach Cregger has mainly been associated with the comedy genre, both as an actor and filmmaker. He’s best known for the sketch comedy show The Whitest Kids U’ Know. But now that Barbarian has catapulted him into the buzzy filmmaker’s club, Cregger plans to up the stakes in his next film. "I’m writing a horror [movie] right now," Cregger told Bloody Disgusting. "It’s way more ambitious than Barbarian. It’s way weirder… and I don’t know if I’m gonna pull it off."
Cregger also has ideas for a DC Universe movie, which he hopes to make one day. It’s not exactly a superhero movie but set within a superhero story. Cregger describes it as a "Batman-adjacent thing." With the way WB is handling the DC Films division right now, it’s unlikely Cregger’s vision will ever come true, but it certainly would be an unconventional take on Batman.
In the meantime, be sure to check out Barbarian, currently playing in theaters. The film also stars Justin Long, Kate Bosworth, Sara Paxton, Matthew Patrick Davis, Richard Brake, Kurt Braunohler, and Jaymes Butler.
The official plot synopsis for Barbarian reads:
"A young woman traveling to Detroit for a job interview books a rental home. But when she arrives late at night, she discovers that the house is double booked, and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgment, she decides to spend the evening, but soon discovers that there's a lot more to fear than just an unexpected house guest."