SPOILERS are ahead for Cruella, which is streaming on Disney+.
Earlier this year, Disney fans were reintroduced to Cruella de Vil, and it was absolutely fabulous. Emma Stone starred as the villain before the events of 101 Dalmatians, at a time when she was the hero of her own story. And as it turned out, Cruella’s own villain was the Baroness, who was dryly and exquisitely played by Emma Thompson. With a sequel now on the way, we do wonder if the Baroness will return or not.
Not long after the release of Cruella, reports barked that it wouldn’t end with the character’s inheritance of Hell Hall. Now that it’s official, director Craig Gillespie, who will once again helm Emma Stone’s villainess, has shared where the team behind Cruella 2 is at right now with developing the sequel. In his words to Comicbook.com:
There's sort of conversations about what [the sequel] will be. Where this world takes us now, and then I think [writer Tony McNamara] will be diving into it. We're in that exploratory phase right now, but they've got a lot of ideas that are exciting.
Tony McNamara previously wrote The Favourite and Hulu’s The Great, and came onto the first Cruella movie to add to the script also written by Dana Fox. McNamara be penning the sequel's script too, but as Craig Gillespie has disclosed, it’s just getting started being formulated by Disney. The studio likely decided it would wait to greenlight a sequel until it saw audience reaction to the film. As soon as Cruella movie came out, it was highly praised, especially for Emma Stone’s performance and its distinct style.
Emma Stone is confirmed to reprise her role as Cruella, but it’s unclear whether Emma Thompson will return for the sequel. When Craig Gillespie was asked about that, here was his reply:
I can't answer this question. It would be a shame if she wasn't in it, wouldn't it?
Hmm… even though he didn’t answer the question, I’m inclined to believe the director would like to see Emma Thompson back in her role after those comments. It would be a “shame,” because she was amazing in the role. As we learn at the end of the flick, the Baroness is, in fact, Cruella’s real mother, but a mother who wanted her child to be killed shortly after her birth. When she had the chance at the end of the film, the Baroness attempted to murder her daughter once and for all, but she was not successful. The movie ends with the Baroness being sent off to jail for killing Estella, Cruella’s alter ego.
Could there be more bad blood for the mother and daughter to air out in a sequel? Personally, I’m not sure yet what I expect from the next Cruella movie, but I’m very happy it’s happening. Thompson was obviously brilliant, so why not?
