A Prequel to Talk to Me Has Already Been Made

If you wanted to see more from the world set up in A24’s new horror film Talk to Me, you may not have to wait long. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, directors Danny and Michael Philippou revealed that they have already shot an entire prequel to the film.

The prequel would follow Duckett, a character introduced in the movie’s opening and is possessed by a spirit he met by communicating with the dead. He and his brother are featured in the cold open before the movie follows the main cast. The plot of the first film followed Australian teenagers who use an embalmed hand to communicate with the dead. It’s a hit for A24, as it’s already earned $11 million on a budget of $4.5 million. You can find our review for it HERE.

Here are highlights:

Danny on the prequel and a possible sequel: “We actually shot an entire Duckett prequel already. It’s told entirely through the perspective of mobile phones and social media, so maybe down the line we can release that. But also while writing the first film, you can’t help but write scenes for a second film. So there’s so many scenes. The mythology was so thick, and if A24 gave us the opportunity, we wouldn’t be able to resist. I feel like we’d jump at it.”

Danny on being inspired by cell phone footage of someone convulsing while on drugs: “I just remember trying to capture that feeling that I had looking at that footage. It was really bothersome, especially when you know the person. And the way that people reacted, I was like, “Why is no one helping this person?” So we tried to capture that with this film.”

Michael on the reaction from Hollywood: “Especially being from Australia where it’s not entertainment driven at all. So having people see it of that caliber is the craziest thing ever. We’ve been doing this giant press run, and we get told, “Guys, get some rest when you can.” But then you see Guillermo Del Toro tweeted about it, saying, “Can’t wait.” And it’s like, “Oh my God!” Leigh Whannell also came to a screening, and Hideo Kojima has reached out and hung out a few times. Ari Aster, we’re friends with him now. We’re actually gonna go meet him after this today. ”

Michael on exploring this universe again: “We have a lot of original stories that we want to tell, but the Talk to Me stuff is exciting to us, too. So the idea of a sequel, we wouldn’t be opposed to it.”