Hiram Garcia gives a promising update on Jumanji 4, saying that director Jake Kasdan will return to direct after wrapping his current film Red One.
Producer Hiram Garcia says that the pitch for Jumanji 4 is ready for Sony. It will be the fourth installment in the Jumanji franchise, and the third in the rebooted series, after 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and 2019’s Jumanji: The Next Level. The franchise stars Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karan Gillan, Nick Jonas, and Awkwafina, with Johnson expressing interest in returning for the new film.
Jumanji tells the story of a video game of the same name, where four teenagers are transported into the game as adult avatars and must complete a quest in order to return to the real world. Both films in the new franchise are directed by Jake Kasdan, director of Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Garcia has already confirmed that Jumanji 4 is early development, but that production largely comes down to the casts’ schedules, given the high demand for the actors.
Both new Jumanji films were hits both critically and financially with both films breaking $800 million at the box office and receiving positive reviews from critics, with its ensemble, action, and humor being praised. Both Gillan and Hart have expressed interest in Jumanji 4, while again emphasizing the delay in release due to the busy schedules of the ensemble. Jumanji 4 could also see the return of Bebe Neuwirth, who had a role in the original 1995 film, and Jumanji: The Next Level, connecting the continuity of the two worlds.
Jumanji is one of the few modern blockbusters that can balance big-scale action with heart and depth. Most blockbusters nowadays have the feeling of being designed by a committee for the broadest passionate audience possible, whereas Jumanji manages to feel like a product made by real people who are about the subject. Not much is known about what Jumanji 4 will look like at this point, but if the creative team behind it can continue the franchise’s winning streak of smart ideas blended with slick action and sharp humor, Jumanji 4 should be an exciting treat for audiences and critics alike.
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