Amazon and Lionsgate are joining forces for A Simple Favor sequel that has Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick reprising their roles. Paul Feig, who directed the original comedic thriller, is also set to return. Jessica Sharzer will write the sequel, which does not have an official description.
The original Simple Favor film focused on a mommy blogger Stephanie(Kendrick), who befriends Emily (Lively), a secretive upper-class woman who has a child at the same elementary school. When Emily goes missing, Stephanie takes it upon herself to investigate.
It is no surprise that the A Simple Favor sequel is in the mix, given that the original movie made $53 million at the domestic box office and $97 million overall. Both Lively and Kendrick are exceptional actors with comedic and dramatic chops to boot. Anyone’s guess is how the A Simple Favor sequel plans to revisit its characters, though I’m confident Feig and company have plenty of ideas.
Feig and Laura Fischer will produce for Feigco Entertainment, with Sharzer executive producing.
Meanwhile, Lively is getting ready to make her feature directorial debut with Seconds for Searchlight, based on the graphic novel by Bryan Lee O’Malley (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World). Seconds is a complex and novelistic stand-alone story about a young restaurant owner named Katie who is given a second chance at love and to undo her wrongs. Introspective, dark, and dreadfully funny at times, Seconds was one of my favorite graphic novels of 2014. It’s wildly different than Scott Pilgrim but retains much of O’Malleys wit, whimsy, and charm.