In 2011, Kevin Smith made a shocking jump to the horror genre with Red State. Although he’s mostly known for his comedy films, with major hits like Clerks and Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, Red State was a major turning point for his career. It opened up the doorway for other strange horror films like Tusk and Killroy Was Here. Now, however, it looks like Kevin Smith could be returning to the world of Red State for a brand-new sequel.
He recently spoke at a Q&A for Clerks III when he began discussing Red State. This discussion was captured by /Film, and excitingly enough, it sounds like Lionsgate is getting rather serious about the sequel. As for what the plot of the film will include, Kevin Smith seems to have the basis of that figured out as well.
Here’s what Kevin Smith shared regarding Lionsgate’s interest in doing a Red State sequel:
“They were like, if we do this, would you do it again? And I was like, yeah, in a heartbeat. […] I mean, obviously, Michael Parks is gone. But it’s just a story of crazy people with guns and s*** like that. As long as I could use John Goodman again. I could make a hundred f****** Red States. And I’m like, let’s do it. So we’re gonna make one.”
Of course, this does indicate that the project seems to be in very early stages of development. This means there is no script attached just yet. But with Lionsgate’s interest and Kevin Smith’s enthusiasm, it certainly seems like this could get off the ground sooner or later. Plus we know that Kevin Smith would want to bring back John Goodman for the film as well. His character, ATF Special Agent Joe Keenan, could return to investigate another similar situation to the first Red State film. If that’s the case, a Red State sequel could function the same as Rian Johnson’s upcoming Knives Out sequel. Specifically in that Daniel Craig’s character Benoit Blanc is the only real connecting element between each individual mystery.
Fans can stay tuned to ScreenGeek for additional updates regarding the potential Red State sequel as we have them. For now, it’s great to see that Kevin Smith and Lionsgate are eager to continue working together. Hopefully there are plenty of exciting new projects to look forward to.