Why You’re Next 2 Never Happened

When You’re Next initially premiered at the 2011 Toronto Film Festival, it was already destined to become a cult classic as the home invasion horror-turned-black comedy thrilled audiences at the midnight screening. However, despite its critical and commercial success, the film never had a sequel even if the ending leaves room for further continuation of the story. Director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett figured there was no reason to revisit the property in order to start a franchise, choosing instead to move on to other projects.

You’re Next is the definition of a midnight movie romp, a bloody, low-budget action-horror that lures audiences in with a typical slasher film premise before twisting halfway through the story into a dark comedy. The plot follows like a gory Home Alone as protagonist Erin, played by Sharni Vinson, builds elaborate traps to protect herself against an invading group of masked killers. The brutality on both sides of the battle results in a vicious cat-and-mouse game that establishes the potential for Erin to become an exciting new heroine in the annals of horror.

The film ends on a bleak joke that can also be interpreted as a cliffhanger, but which unfortunately denies fans further adventures of Erin. The film opened up at the number six place in the box office upon its debut, quickly falling in revenue within the weeks afterward. However, considering the fact that You’re Next was made on a one million dollar budget, the otherwise meager seven million dollars the film made on its opening weekend was considered a success. Normally, this would be satisfactory evidence for a sequel.

A Sequel to You’re Next Had Potential, But Never Happened

In an interview with IndieWire, Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett expressed that they never had intentions of turning You’re Next into a franchise. In fact, Wingard stated that the original ending, which was shot but never used, was going to have Erin being shot in the head. Part of the reason why a sequel wasn’t considered is because the duo was working on their follow-up feature, The Guest, at the time of the premiere of You’re Next. Without any press tours to garner media attention, the movie allowed the filmmakers to become more recognizable names in the industry but lost demand for a sequel. You’re Next may have made its money back and more, but it wasn’t the type of studio blockbuster hit films like The Conjuring would eventually become. Barrett stated that:

“…when You’re Next came out, it was like, oh okay that’s a modest success. But not enough that we had to worry about a sequel.”

However, Wingard and Barrett did have specific ideas for a sequel in mind. The follow-up would have had Erin taken to prison as a suspect for the murders, only for her transport van to get attacked by the man known as Lamb Mask, who has survived the knife wound from the previous film. Erin would have had to evade the menace while chained and handcuffed together with the other prisoners. Eventually, the group would have discovered a boobytrapped meth lab that would have led to an even more action-oriented bloodbath than the original You’re Next.

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