Nine years have passed since Fantastic Four (2015) and Capone director Josh Trank's feature directorial debut Chronicle (watch it HERE) reached theatre screens, and for a while after the release of the film there was talk of a sequel being in development. Chronicle screenwriter Max Landis wrote the script for a sequel, but it never went into production – and while it's no surprise that Landis scripts aren't being made now, back then it was a surprise. There seemed to be disagreements over story and tone, and then we stopped hearing about Chronicle 2. But now producer John Davis has revealed that the sequel is back in development – and will focus on a new group of characters. While the first film centered on a group of male characters, the sequel will have female leads.
Speaking to Forbes, Davis said,
Chronicle was literally the best return on investment, any of my movies ever made. Chronicle we did for $12 million, and it grossed $126.64 million worldwide. Then it had a huge afterlife in syndication. It’s one of the most financially successful movies in my stable. We’re working on Chronicle 2 right now, and I think it’s going to be great. We’re working on it at Fox (20th Century Studios). It’s going to give us a chance to tell the story in a different way. We’re going to tell it from the female point of view. It will have been ten years since the event happened in Seattle, and a lot of it’s going to deal with fake news and real news and cover-ups. More interestingly, it’s the next generation getting these powers that are corruptive. These are young women just finishing college, they are empowered, and this is their journey.
The first Chronicle had the following synopsis:
Andrew (Dane DeHaan) is a socially awkward, introverted teen whose main form of escape and expression is a video camera. But things begin to change when Andrew, his cousin Matt (Alex Russell) and popular classmate Steve (Michael B. Jordan) discover a mysterious substance that leaves them with incredible powers. As their abilities become more powerful, the teens' lives spin out of control when their darker sides begin to emerge. Andrew's camera captures the unfolding events.
The film has a solid fan base, but for me it's one that I have tried to like and just haven't fully been able to, even though I do find it to be the least off-putting of all the movies Max Landis has written. The found footage style doesn't help it appeal to me. After watching the movie the first time, I was left with the feeling that I probably would have enjoyed it more if it hadn't been found footage, if the scenes didn't need to depend on the characters pointing cameras at themselves.
If Chronicle 2 does make it into production this time, it will be interesting to see exactly how the story ties to the first movie.