After years spent navigating the labyrinth of development hell, a highly anticipated sequel to the vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows is finally showing signs of life.
Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, the creative duo behind the wildly successful original film, are now tackling the challenge of bringing their favorite supernatural shenanigans to the big screen. While Clement was recently promoting the New Zealand stop-motion feature Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, attention has turned to their next project: We’re Wolves, a film focusing on the rival werewolf pack led by Rhys Darby’s Anton.
The journey from spontaneous improv to structured storytelling is proving to be an exciting creative experiment. The original film was largely improvised, a whirlwind of spontaneity, while the subsequent television series provided a more scripted framework. Now, the creators face the fun dilemma of deciding which path to take for their next cinematic adventure.
When discussing the development of the sequel, Clement noted that the process is finally underway. “We’re writing it, actually. We started writing. For a long time, we were just talking about it. Now, we’ve started it. Very recently… When we get together, we do some work on it.”
This shift in approach is rooted in the film’s history. The original What We Do in the Shadows was a delightfully low-budget venture, less than a million dollars spent over a month of playful messing around that resulted in some truly memorable special effects. That initial challenge to improvise a movie with flying people and supernatural mayhem has now evolved into a decision about control.
The question is whether they should embrace the freedom of improv or lean into a structured script, knowing the unique rhythm that defined their earlier work. Clement admitted that having the control of the shot was inherently fun during the spontaneous process, but scripting offers a different kind of narrative satisfaction.
As for the timeline, the duo is aiming for a measured pace. Clement suggested that by 2027, they hope to have the script completed, noting that being in the same country helps facilitate the creative flow between him and Waititi.
Credit: Dark Horizons
