A Simple Favor 2 Will Reunite Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, And Director Paul Feig
Here's some unexpected news: Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively are re-teaming with director Paul Feig to star in a sequel to their 2018 crime comedy-thriller "A Simple Favor." Per a report from Deadline, the film is being backed as a joint venture by Lionsgate and Amazon Studios, with Jessica Sharzer (who scripted the original movie based on Darcey Bell's 2017 novel) once again penning the script.
"A Simple Favor" stars Kendrick as Stephanie Smothers, a single, humble mother (though not one who's hurting for secrets) with a parenting vlog who befriends Emily Nelson (Lively), the mother of one of her son's schoolmates and a mysterious, upper-class woman with an elegant sense of fashion. (She's the PR director at a fashion company for a good reason.) When Emily goes missing one day after asking Stephanie to pick up her son from school, the latter takes it upon herself to play the sleuth and find out what happened. The answer is more bizarre and twisted than she ever would've imagined.
Anna Kendrick, crime solver?
In Paul Feig's hands, "A Simple Favor" plays out like a zanier, more irreverent version of "Gone Girl," powered by Kendrick and Lively's onscreen chemistry. It's not a film that ends with any obvious setup for a sequel, but I certainly wouldn't say no to one, either. Feig's movie lacks the biting satire of David Fincher's "Gone Girl" film adaptation, but it makes up the difference with self-aware, cheeky humor, and a lot more queer energy. And did I mention Lively's fabulous suits? Because they really are to die for.
"A Simple Favor" ends with Stephanie developing her vlog into a TV series and taking up a career as a part-time detective, so I imagine the sequel will build on that by giving her a new mystery to unravel. Perhaps Emily will assist her from prison (for those who haven't seen the film, it's a long story), acting as the Hannibal Lecter to her Clarice Starling? Or maybe Emily breaks out and it's up to Stephanie to find her? Either way, I'm keen to learn more about how Feig and his crew intend to build upon the first movie, especially if the plan is to make a sequel that's basically their version of "Knives Out."
Beyond that? My only request is that Feig include a musical number like the one he cut from the first movie. Yes, that is a real thing.