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Jake Kasdan, director of Sony’s Jumanji reboot series, has spoken about who might be in the cast for the next instalment in the franchise.
Kasdan, who helmed 2017’s Welcome To The Jungle and 2019’s The Next Level, had caused controversy amongst fans when the latest entry in the franchise, which saw four teenagers sucked into a magical video game, included a post-credits scene that implied a new main character would emerge for the sequel.
After the credits rolled, Lamorne Morris – who has worked with director Jake Kasdan on hit TV show New Girl – was seen in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance before the picture cut to black. According to some fans, this implied Morris would take over as lead in the next movie.
However, Kasdan has strongly hinted that the films’ main cast – Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Karen Gillan and Kevin Hart, who play avatars in the film’s video game world – would return for Jumanji 3 as they were “the glue” of the franchise.
“The whole thing, to me, is built on the foundation of those people,” he said. “The game cast are these brilliant movie stars, these iconic people.”
Kasdan added that “the kids” – Alex Wolff, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, who play the real-life versions of the avatar characters – are just “brilliant” in the series.
“The thing that’s easy to not fully appreciate in the mix of how they work is that the kids are just brilliant,” Kasdan said. “And Alex [Wolff] in particular just really… he plays that character in such a funny, smart way. He’s quietly a really essential part of it.”
When Kasdan was asked whether Wolff – who told NME recently that he would “freak out” if he wasn’t asked to star in the next film – would be reprising his role, the director answered: “It’s hard to imagine a Jumanji movie without Alex Wolff in it.”
He also addressed the previous addition of new characters in the series, including Spencer’s grandfather Eddie Gilpin in The Next Level, portrayed by Danny DeVito.
“The family has grown beyond in ways that…” Kasdan said, before trailing off. “The great thrill of making the second [movie] was bringing all these people into it.”
He added: “Doing these two [movies] has been an incredible experience. I’ve loved every minute of it. The whole thing – even talking about a third one. It’s been a joyful four years.”
Kasdan said there is currently no working title for the third film, however, his team are in the “very earliest” stages of mapping a sequel out.
He described the previous two films as each having “a closed loop”. “Each one can conclude itself fully”, he said.
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