Paul Feig Explains Why He Threw Out First Script for Anna Kendrick Sequel

Paul Feig is explaining why the original script to A Simple Favor 2 was thrown out.

Speaking with Variety, Feig said that A Simple Favor 2 was close to starting production when he decided to throw the script out and start from scratch.

“We threw out the original draft that was going to get made,” he said. “We were like, ‘As much as we like what we have here, we don’t think this is what the people who really loved the first movie are going to 100 percent want.’ We’ve been working on it for two and half years now, almost three, developing it and getting it right.”

He further said of the sequel, “It’s a lot because also if you look at my work, I’ve never done a sequel before just for that very reason,” Feig says. “I’ve always tried to stay away from it but this one I just loved these characters and always felt we can revisit them.”

Who stars in A Simple Favor 2?

A Simple Favor 2 will see Blake Lively, Anna Kenrick, Henry Golding, Andrew Rannells, Bashir Salahuddin, Joshua Satine, Ian Ho, and Kelly McCormack all reprise their roles from the original film. Alex Newell, Allison Janney, Elena Sofia Ricci, Michele Morrone, Elizabeth Perkins, Alex Newell, Taylor Ortega, and Lorenzo de Moor are also joining the cast.

Regarding whether or not A Simple Favor 2 will contain a musical number, Feig said, “I cannot confirm or deny that but I just love Alex. But I don’t know. The first movie had a big musical number at the end and test audiences hated it.”

A Simple Favor was released in 2018. The film, which is based on Darcey Bell’s 2017 novel, was a financial success for Lionsgate, earning approximately $97.6 million at the global box office off an estimated budget of $20 million.

A Simple Favor 2 does not yet have a release date. The 2018 movie, meanwhile, is currently streaming on Netflix.