Today, May 30th, marks the 20th anniversary of the release of the backwoods slasher movie Wrong Turn, and to celebrate Entertainment Weekly has published an article that looks back at the making of the film, from the real-life moment that inspired Alan B. McElroy to write the screenplay (he and his wife were stuck in a winter traffic jam and decided to take a side road detour) through the hiring of Rob Schmidt to direct the film (he chose it over a Hellraiser sequel), the casting of the killers, and the tricks Stan Winston’s FX team did on the set. The article also gives a nod to the five sequels that followed – and to the 2021 reboot, which was also written by McElroy. While being interviewed, McElroy mentioned that he’s hoping to make two sequels to the reboot.
Directed by Mike P. Nelson, the 2021 Wrong Turn had the following synopsis: Backwoods terror and never-jangling suspense meet when Jen (Charlotte Vega) and a group of friends set out to hike the Appalachian Trail. Despite warnings to stick to the trail, the hikers stray off course—and cross into land inhabited by The Foundation, a hidden community of mountain dwellers who use deadly means to protect their way of life. Suddenly under siege, Jen and her friends seem headed to the point of no return— unless Jen’s father (Golden Globe nominee Matthew Modine) can reach them in time.
The reboot came about because McElroy had stayed in touch with an executive at Constantin Film, the company that provided much of the original film’s budget. The initial plan was that the new Wrong Turn would bring the franchise back to theatres after five direct-to-video sequels, but then the pandemic hit. It got a limited theatrical release, then went digital. McElroy revealed, “I had planned two more films, so there would be a trilogy, based around this idea of the Foundation and these characters. I’d love to finish it and see it all come out the way I wanted.“
It’s odd to change the direction of a franchise seven movies in, but I thought the 2021 Wrong Turn was surprisingly good. (Our own Lance Vlcek disagreed; you can read his 4/10 review HERE). I would be all for seeing McElroy finish his Foundation trilogy… but I would also like to see the return of the backwoods slashers from the original movie in a sequel that’s better than most of the direct-to-video follow-ups were. I feel like the franchise has potential that it hasn’t reached yet.
Would you like to see McElroy get the chance to make his Wrong Turn sequels? Let us know by leaving a comment below.