'Chronicle' Director Josh Trank Unsure About Sequel; Working On Other Original Ideas At Fox

Chronicle, the 'teens with powers' movie that hit two weeks ago, almost instantly established director Josh Trank and screenwriter Max Landis as talents to watch. Trank has a deal with Fox, and is in the midst of developing new projects, even as rumors fly that the studio has an eye on him to reboot the Fantastic Four. Trank has denied that he knows anything about that, and continues to hold that position, which leads to the obvious question: what's next?

According to the most commonly-used map that charts a path for this particular scenario, Chronicle 2 would be next. But Trank doesn't seem to be very interested in a sequel to his debut feature. Instead, he's developing other original projects at Fox.

The Playlist spoke to Josh Trank, and when asked about a sequel, he said,

I'm still not sure [about 'Chronicle 2']. I was nervous this type of movie would be perceived as a gimmick... I kind of stubbornly tried to maintain the purity of the [found footage] concept throughout. This movie is rooted in that style, so any kind of sequel should go along the same track. But again, there's the risk it could be less fresh than the last film.

Granted, that's not a statement that says "I don't want to do it," but Trank does say,

I do have a deal with Fox, but right now I'm trying to work on original ideas. To me the most important thing is a good story, though I know how cliché that sounds. Finding my next project, whether it's a big franchise idea, or a small idea, it's all about strong characters and a good story, making something I would really want to see.

Oh, and to those who might argue that Chronicle isn't exactly original, given a certain indebtedness to Katsuhiro Otomo's Akira, Trank does acknowledge the kinship. He calls Dane DeHann, who played protagonist/villain Andrew, his "American Tetsuo." But while the Akira similarity is certainly present, I'd argue that Chronicle tells its own story in its own way that stands apart from any inspiration.