The Paddington franchise has become something of a dark horse property in recent years, with both Paddington and Paddington 2 both shocking audiences with their high levels of quality and their overwhelming sense of optimism. The warm welcome that Paddington 2 received earlier this year has left some wondering if and when a third film would go into development, but we will have to wait a while before that actually happens. Speaking about Paddington director Paul King in a recent interview, voice actor Ben Whishaw explained:
I can't imagine what it would be like without him, so I think it's really down to whether he wants to or not. ... I think he probably needs a real break from Paddington right now because he's spent the last five years doing it.
So it sounds like that adorable bear is going to have to wait a while for his next marmalade sandwich because no one is really sure if Paul King intends to come back for another Paddington movie. Given the relatively fast turnaround rate that saw the debut of the original Paddington in 2014 and the release of the sequel in 2017 (which is fairly quick when we consider the effects work that these movies take), then it makes a certain degree of sense to know that King could want to put the character on the back-burner for the foreseeable future.
A big part of this uncertainty comes from the fact that Paul King has become a fairly busy guy in recent months. Though Paddington 2 only debuted in American theaters earlier this year, he has moved on to other projects such as a live-action adaptation of Pinocchio for Disney, as well as a brand-new Willy Wonka movie. That is a lot of different, whimsical properties to work on at once, so the idea of adding Paddington 3 to that plate probably doesn't seem too enticing just yet.
Of course, one piece of the puzzle is already in place. Though it remains unclear if writer-director Paul King has any interest in returning for Paddington 3, Ben Whishaw's remarks to EW make it clear that he's good-to-go if the opportunity presents itself. None of this officially means that a Paddington threequel will or won't happen, but it's at least comforting to know that the Skyfall actor is game for another go-around if it ever comes to that.
CinemaBlend will bring you all of the latest and greatest updates out of the Paddington world as new details related to the beloved, family-friendly franchise are made available to us. Until then, you can also head over to our movie premiere guide to get more information on all of the films that are currently set to hit theaters for the rest of this year!
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