The Black Phone 2 Bringing Back Ethan Hawke, Despite The Events Of The Black Phone
Somehow, The Grabber returned. Ever since the moment "The Black Phone" landed in theaters and promptly became the latest in a long line of excellent horror movies to overperform at the box office, a sequel to director Scott Derrickson and frequent writing partner C. Robert Cargill's smash hit has felt like a fait accompli. After quite a lot of speculation and even a major public reversal on Derrickson's part, those rumors finally became a reality earlier this year when it was officially confirmed that "The Black Phone 2" was in the works. At the time, it seemed like any potential follow-up would have to adjust the scope of its story, either to focus on surviving characters like Mason Thames' young Finney Blake and his sister Gwen (played by Madeleine McGraw), new protagonists altogether, or (dare I say it) Ethan Hawke's sinister kidnapper and murderer known as The Grabber for some sort of prequel/origin tale.
Today's news has answered some questions about the plot of this sequel while inviting a whole lot more.
According to Deadline, deals have been reached to bring back much of the original cast of the first "Black Phone." That includes Thames, McGraw, Jeremy Davies as their deadbeat dad Terrence, and even Miguel Mora as Robin, one of Finney's friends who was abducted and killed. Oh, and there's also the small matter of Hawke himself, who will indeed reprise his role as the main villain ... despite the fact that, you know, he had his neck snapped in decisive fashion by the end of the original movie. But when has a silly little thing like that ever stopped anyone in this business from coming back for more, eh?
The Black Phone 2 comes to theaters in 2025
Who's ready for round two? Poor Finney and Gwen probably thought their troubles were over, but the franchise machine has yet to be defeated. As if it wasn't traumatic enough to end up a prisoner in some ramshackle basement and haunted by the mysterious phone calls of a serial killer's prior victims, it appears that The Grabber is set to appear once again — in some form, at least. The premise of the supernatural thriller sort of leaves the door open for the deceased to interact with the living to a certain extent, so perhaps the same will apply to Ethan Hawke's masked villain. In any case, fans of his downright frightening performance in the original movie should be happy to see him expand on what worked so well the last time around ... especially since both Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill likely wouldn't have returned without a killer pitch.
The Deadline article is light on any actual plot details, not to mention the involvement of Joe Hill (who wrote the original short story that the first film is based on) and whether or not the sequel will actually be titled "The Black Phone 2." That said, it's known that much of the original cast and creative team will return for this next production, including Jason Blum as producer. In any case, we'll be sure to report on any significant updates that come in during the weeks and months ahead. Just be sure to keep an eye out for any strange men in black vans with black balloons, in the meantime.
"The Black Phone 2" will begin haunting theaters on June 27, 2025.