Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez is having a bit of a moment right now thanks to his work helming an episode of “The Mandalorian”. He’s also scored a key regular producing role on another “Star Wars” series in the works in the wake of that.
Then there’s “Alita: Battle Angel,” the mega-budget sci-fi film he helmed in 2019. It received mixed-positive reviews at the time and proved not that profitable, snagging a solid $405 million in box-office but from a costly $150-200 million budget.
As the months have passed since the film’s release though, it has seemingly grown in estimation with many seemingly open to a follow-up. In a new interview with Forbes, Rodriguez says he thinks one could happen at the Disney+ service:
“I think anything is possible. Disney bought Fox, and they have Disney+, so that is worth the conversation. I know other people would love to see another, and I would love to do another one. As far as where it would go or how it would be made, I think streaming has opened up many opportunities such as sequels. It’s already a pre-sold concept, it’s already got a built-in audience that wants to see it, and then it’s delivered to them in a way that’s the easiest for them to consume. So, it’s not a bad idea.”
“Alita” spent many years in development as it was originally going to be a James Cameron-directed feature (Cameron remains on board as producer). As a result, it had to swallow a lot of development costs, something a sequel would not have to worry about.
Alternatively, the property could be followed up with a series – one using the “Mandalorian” ScreenCraft tech to keep the budget down as well. For now, Disney has no plans for a follow-up.