Brad Bird is an acclaimed writer and director, and when you make great movies, people are going to ask for sequels eventually. Bird has held back the wolves for years, but he finally relented on making a sequel to his Pixar classic The Incredibles after he came up with the right story. With that upcoming blockbuster poised to be a huge hit, is Bird open to revisiting any of his other films, like the classic The Iron Giant? As far as Bird is concerned, that story is fully wrapped up and he isn't much interested in making The Iron Giant 2.
You know, I feel like that story is told. I'm told I need to do an Iron Giant 2 and I'm told I need to remake everything that I've made and no one apparently wants anything new anymore. I'm a little at odds with society on that. I would like to do some new things.
The Iron Giant is a 1999 animated movie directed by Brad Bird that follows lonely boy Hogarth, who befriends a giant, amnesiac robot from space, and must protect him from the government G-men who have come to find him. It's an emotional and visually stunning movie that the original fans are nostalgic for, so it's easy to see why a sequel to the movie (which sort of had an open ending) is in demand. However, Bird isn't too interested in revisiting The Iron Giant or any of his older movies.
Brad Bird told io9 that he wouldn't be making a sequel to The Iron Giant. The director isn't too keen on the sequel fever that has obsessed Hollywood for the past few years, and would rather spend his time creating something new than retreading old ground. As far as he is concerned, he told the story he wanted to tell in The Iron Giant, but anyone else who wants to take a crack is welcome to do so.
This no-sequel attitude goes for the rest of his filmography as well. Bird doesn't have any plans to make another Ratatouille or Mission: Impossible, though the fairly standalone nature of the latter franchise would make it relatively simple for Bird.
While Bird's attitude toward making sequels may seem odd considering that Incredibles 2 is just a week away from release, but it's probably a good thing that Bird would rather make something new. While something like Incredibles 2 is nice, that's a world that justifies more movies. Ratatouille and The Iron Giant were standalone and wrapped up their stories satisfyingly. Besides, Bird is too good a talent to box into sequels. Bring on the new stuff, so that we can demand more sequels!
Brad Bird may not be into sequels, so soak in Incredibles 2 while you can. The highly anticipated sequel is set to hit theaters on June 15.
