Earlier this month, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters writer/director Tommy Wirkola offered an update on the status of the planned sequel, reporting that he had completed work on the screenplay and that the biggest hurdle would be finding time in star Jeremy Renner’s busy schedule. Now, however, it seems that plans have changed and that Wirkola will be stepping down as helmer.
“I’ve just decided to not direct ‘Hansel & Gretel 2,’ Wirkola tells Fangoria today. “I have been lately attached to a few more things. It’s just a matter of time and priorities. I did ‘Dead Snow 1,’ then ‘Hansel & Gretel 1,’ and then ‘Dead Snow 2’. I want to do something a little bit different now and not just do sequels. I did write the script and I hope to be involved in it. But yeah, I won’t be directing it.”
The original film, released in 2013, also stars Gemma Arteron and Famke Jansen and took place 15 years after the Hansel and Gretel incident at the gingerbread house. The two are now specialized bounty hunters looking to put down the cackling black-hat set. The release grossed $55 million domestically and an estimated $170 million internationally.
No timeframe has, as of yet, been announced regarding Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters 2, but check back for updates as they become available.
