Happy Death Day 3 Would Have Been An 'Epic Apocalyptic Adventure' With Horror Elements

Horror has never been my genre. I don't find myself as invested in the macabre as most do, and when a film tries to scare me and it doesn't, I just end up annoyed. Consequently, I end up skipping quite a few horror movies in theaters, regardless of how the horror community reacts to them (because they generally will give the genre far more slack than I will). One of those films I skipped was 2017's "Happy Death Day," despite its positive reviews. I went, "Okay. It's a 'Groundhog Day' slasher," and never gave it a second thought.

Two years later, "Happy Death Day 2U" hits theaters. It was receiving even better press than the first one, and based on the trailer, this one was leaning further into the camp and craziness of it all. I decide to give it a shot. Color me shocked, I had an absolute blast. Christopher Landon directed the first film, and for this sequel he also wrote the screenplay. He was clearly not interested in making some cash-in sequel but really wanted to break apart the series' time-lopping structure and have as much fun with the premise as possible. At the center, he also had this exceptional, unhinged lead performance by Jessica Rothe who nails every single joke in that screenplay.

I was thrilled to be in on a horror franchise, which is something I can really only say about the "Scream" films, and because we are in the era of franchises, I expected a third film. However, Christopher Landon recently told /Film that there's "no movement at all" on that film. Considering "2U" made about half of what the first film made, that's not surprising. But that doesn't mean Landon doesn't know what it will be if the chance does come. And, folks, it sounds rad.

"Happy Death Day 2U" certainly still has its roots in horror, but its ambitions expanded far beyond that into full-on science fiction comedy. The rules of time travel are as important as the kills themselves, which is a big reason as to why I was able to lock in with the film. Christopher Landon recently told The Wrap about his plan for what the third "Happy Death Day" film would have been — and still hopes to be, if the opportunity presents itself — and it would have taken the world of the franchise to an even more delightfully bonkers place:

"The third movie was going to be an epic apocalyptic adventure with still elements of horror. That was not getting left behind. But yeah, we were going to change gears again and it was going to be bigger [...] I think that was probably also what held us back a touch because the concept for the third movie is a bigger, much bigger movie."

In the years since "Happy Death 2U," horror has only continued to show its might at the box office to a greater degree. It is one of the few genres audiences will continue to head to the theaters for, and if people will show up for wacky sci-fi premises like "Everything Everywhere All at Once" too, I could definitely see a world where Universal and Blumhouse decide to go ahead with this film that melds those two elements, despite the box office dip of "Happy Death Day 2U." I know I desperately want to see it.