14 DAY TRIAL // “Inception” is not even out in certain territories yet, but word of a sequel is already starting to make the rounds. Not that this should come as much of a surprise, since Hollywood does have a reputation for making a follow-up for any movie that is considered a box office success, even if critics trash it in their reviews. Still, turning “Inception” may prove too risky and poised for failure, Ted Casablanca of E!’s The Awful Truth writes after talking with a few industry.
Which, of course, is not to say that it’s not going to happen. Industry insiders and even people from within the “Inception” production staff believe the real challenge with it is not in coming out with a sequel – but making it at least as better as the original so as not to ruin the feel and the effort that went into the first film. Another thing that must weigh heavily in the balance as regards a follow-up is coming up with a good story and getting the entire team on board.
“When we mentioned a sequel to our newest blockbuster fave, Inception, we were just assuming that Hollywood would want to milk its success for every last penny it could. Which no doubt would include Inception: Return to the Subconscious. But let’s get serious, how likely is a sequel? ‘Even in making a sequel, you have to be fresh. You have to be different. You have to take risks,’ Christopher Nolan, the director of the dreamy flick, told Entertainment Weekly recently. So why not take an even bigger risk and not ruin the first film by slapping on a subpar second?” Casablanca says.
“Here’s what one top H’wood exec has to say when we asked if Leo and Co. would return if the film sought, dare we even suggest, trilogy status: ‘Hopefully there won’t be a sequel. [The ending] definitely leaves it open for a sequel, but really you could do it with a whole new cast,’ the T-town big wig, who played a mucho important role in developing the first flick, gabbed. ‘It’s just a heist movie with a twist. If Leo doesn’t want to do it, maybe the second could be with Joseph Gordon-Levitt’,” the same report further reads.
Even if DiCaprio chooses to sit this one out and his place is taken by Gordon-Levitt, there is one person who is absolutely irreplaceable for “Inception 2” to happen and maintain the same standards as the original: director Christopher Nolan. Should he too be on board, then that leaves the question of the budget, which has to be way bigger than the rumored $160 million that went into making the first flick. Granted, at first sight, it may seem like there’s too many “ifs” to make “Inception 2” even a remote possibility – but stranger cases of sequels have been known to happen. Keep an eye on this space for more on this.
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