Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater’s Collaborations
Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater have reunited for their ninth film together, Blue Moon. Despite this ongoing partnership, Hawke expressed hesitation about continuing the Before film series.
The Future of Black Phone Sequel
The horror sequel Black Phone 2, featuring Ethan Hawke's character returning from the dead, had a strong box office debut with $26.5 million over the weekend. Hawke enjoys working in genre films and is eager for another installment.
“I would like to go to hell with the Grabber. That would be my dream for the third one, to let it be a character piece about what made him, who he is now, and how he’s haunting other people’s dreams.”
Hawke on Continuing the Before Series
Despite the popularity of the Before trilogy, which ended with Before Midnight 12 years ago, Hawke does not believe another film in the series is necessary. He shared in a conversation with Variety:
“The answer I usually give is that the three films feel complete. The first one begins with us on a train listening to a couple in their mid-40s fighting, and in the third one, we’ve become that couple. The circle feels complete.”
He added that if they were to create another film, it probably wouldn't be another Before movie but rather something new, possibly titled the After series. The essence of the Before films was the shared vision between Julie Delpy, Linklater, and himself.
“Part of what made those movies special is that Julie, Rick, and I were always in sync about what we wanted to say. That could happen again one day — it might start with one phone call or an email.”
Summary
Ethan Hawke values his collaborations with Richard Linklater but sees the Before trilogy as complete, while showing enthusiasm for future projects, especially in genre films.
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