The internet is a powerful place, as it can topple governments, alter world markets, and even give or take life from sequels to the films we either love or loathe. Sure enough, those powers are at work again as a director has cast his fate to the wind and the whims of the world wide web, and given an ultimatum. Strangely enough, Marlon Wayans just might get his wish if his latest Instagram post is telling the truth, as a decent number of people have spoken and they want to see White Chicks 2 become a reality.
Taking to the popular social media platform, Wayans posted the following call to arms for fans of the 2004 comedy:
As of this printing, the post calling for White Chicks 2 to become a reality has over 441,000 likes – which is already well above the target that Marlon Wayans had specified just three days ago. While this isn't the first or even second time the writer/director has tried to drum up interest in another go-round with his pair of FBI agents turned young socialites, the third time could be a charm for Wayans to actually get this film made, and it's all thanks to the most unlikely of sources.
Picture this if you will: a young rapper who's on the rise goes missing. A drug cartel is behind the nefarious deed, and FBI agents Kevin and Marcus Copeland are on the case to save her from peril. Using their undercover skills, the pair of agents don their female disguises again – one doing the performing, while the other does the public appearances. All the while, searching for the missing starlet, before time runs out. If Iggy Azalea would agree to take the piss out of the White Girls meme linked to her name once and for all, maybe she'd sign on for White Chicks 2 and make this gag a reality.
Of course, there's the issue that all good films come down in the final phases before a green light: their earning potential. If we're going by the track record of the last Wayans franchise to hit theaters, A Haunted House, there was a roughly 40% drop between the first and second installments with almost twice the budget being spent in the process. Using those numbers, White Chicks 2 would be projected to spend about $60 million in production costs, with roughly $68 million in grosses to show for it. Considering there's only 441,000 people we absolutely know want a sequel to White Chicks, and the average ticket costing $8.17, that equals a gross of $3.6 million.
This crude market survey means that a couple of factors would need to be kept in consideration before even seriously talking about a Marlon Wayans driven sequel. First, the budget would have to be something more lean and manageable. The ball park of the $2.5 million it cost to make A Haunted House sounds about right, and would actually yield a small profit with the figures show above. Second, and most importantly, the distribution platform of Crackle would help Sony capitalize on this niche market, as well as lend the film the exoticism that a platform exclusive always affords. If it'll work for Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser, then it could surely work for White Chicks 2
While it's far from a done deal, and far from a good idea, White Chicks 2 could happen – and with a reasonable level of success – if entered into carefully. However, it's all a pipe dream for now. In the meantime, we'll just have to wait for Fifty Shades Of Black to either go before cameras or officially be announced as cancelled, before any movement could possibly be made on White Chicks 2. As soon as we hear any other warnings about this project, we'll let you know as soon as possible.
