It's not every day that you learn there was a sequel planned to one of your favorite films of all time. I'm talking about Luc Besson's The Fifth Element, of course, and I've just learned that we almost got another adventure based on the sci-fi cult classic.
For the uninitiated, The Fifth Element is endlessly quotable, side-splittingly funny, and chock full o’ fantastical action. It's an otherworldly adventure that lands its characters in a race against time with aliens, anarchists, and a supreme being all fighting for the fate of the world. It's a must-see for any film fan.
Revelations related to the project come from The Fifth Element co-writer Robert Kamen, who says there was a sequel planned based on a cut from the original script. Kamen said as much during his recent talk with Uproxx:
It was actually 180 pages, and then he added a second part to it, which made no sense either. We were going to do it as a sequel, but it made no sense, and The Fifth Element wasn’t big enough here. It was huge in the rest of the world, and it’s a classic, but it only did $75 million here or $80 million. It was way ahead of its time. So we never did the sequel, and the sequel would have been taking the other 180-page thing he had and working it into a script. He and I worked for a long time, we’ve since done 15 or 16 films together.
What? Why didn't you all see The Fifth Element in theaters upward of nine times as I did? If we had all done that, surely the sequel would have been given a green light. See, this is why we can't have nice things. Heh. I'm just kidding, I'm not really mad at you. To tell you the truth, I'm not even sure that I'd want a sequel. Why risk tarnishing perfection, right?
While Kamen neglected to share any plot details related to the sequel, he did reveal that he and Besson had a whopping 180 pages worth of story for the would-be idea. I can only imagine where those pages might have taken the characters after their wild space adventure in Fhloston Paradise. Another world-ending scenario perhaps? A much-needed vacation after saving the universe? An origin story revolving around the creation of the Supreme Being? Alas, it's likely that we'll never know, at least not in any way that involves the silver screen. Maybe they could take those pages and turn them into an animated feature, video game, or comic book series? I could totally see a publisher like Boom! Studios snapping up the rights and setting their best and brightest on the concept.
How about you? Are you upset that we never got a sequel to The Fifth Element? Is it too late for someone to get their hands on those pages and make plans for another film? Would Besson return to direct or should someone new take the helm? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.