The original Labyrinth was one of those movies that was such a precise product of its time, place, and the creative collision of the people working on it that it’s hard to imagine ever recreating the same ineffable magic of the 80’s dark fantasy musical, or why you’d want to try. But that’s never stopped Hollywood before, and a sequel is reportedly finally getting off the ground with horror director Robert Eggers at the helm.
Deadline reports that Eggers has closed a deal with TriStar Pictures to write and direct a sequel to the movie which starred David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly, and a sprawling cast of some of Jim Henson’s most memorable muppets. Chris and Eleanor Columbus will apparently produce the film along with two of Henson’s kids, Lisa and Brian. There’s reportedly a completed script as well, though no word on whether it’s a musical or how many of the original characters will return.
Eggers’ stock is trading at an all-time high after 2024’s Nosferatu, a vampire thriller remake, became his top grossing movie ever, scoring over $150 million at the box office. It might not sound like a lot compared to other modern blockbusters, but it’s a huge commercial hit relative to the rest of the director’s more niche genre releases (all excellent), including The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman. Nosferatu also received multiple Oscar nominations today, and Eggers has already locked down his next horror project, titled Werwulf.
All of which is to say it’s hard to imagine Eggers making a bad movie, but it’s also hard to imagine what a good sequel to Labyrinth would look like roughly 40 years later, when some of the unique talents integral to the original’s incredible music and evocative world—Bowie and Henson—are gone. Among the more memorable performances in the 1986 movie are are a troll named Hoggle, a giant Wookie-like beast called Ludo, and a knight named Sir Didymus who is really a dog whose horse is also a dog (though notably the puppet for Hoggle was manipuated by Brian Henson, who’s producing the sequel).
With Werwulf not coming out until Christmas day in 2026, we still have plenty of time before the Labyrinth sequel hits theaters. In the meantime I’m both morbidly curious and terrified to learn more. Fortunately, you can always go back and stream the original on Peacock.
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