GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — It’s been less than a year since "Moon Ghost" premiered in Grand Rapids, and the creative team behind the film is already gearing up to shoot a sequel.
“I ended up writing the first draft of the sequel just a couple of weeks before we premiered at Celebration Cinema last fall,” writer and director Joshua Courtade said. “I was already starting to think about that before the first one was released, but not while we were making it. And then, around the time that the movie actually started playing and getting some traction, that’s when I said ‘alright, we need to do a second one.’”
The new film, titled "Moon Ghost Returns", will continue the storyline from the original, he said, utilizing some of the same characters.
“It's the story of this one young woman, Selena, who is having these mysterious visions and dreams and realizes that it's her destiny to stop Moon Ghost, essentially. And it all culminates in this battle between the two of them,” Courtade said. “The second one picks up about two years later, so the moon ghost apocalypse has happened, and now we're sort of seeing what the world is like now. Selena is dealing with the aftermath of all that, and now she’s starting to have visions again.”
Most of the major roles have been cast, he said, but there are still a few spots to fill before filming commences in April.
“We released the first one just before Halloween last year, and that's the idea for this one, to try and get it into Celebration Cinema just before Halloween again,” Courtade said. “That seems to be a good time for absurd, silly monster comedies. That's the time people want to go see spooky stuff.”
And he’s not stopping there. Courtade said he already drafted a script for a third installation and recently started writing a fourth one.
“Horror movies are notorious for having, you know, zillions of sequels,” he said. “You can always bring back a good monster.”
Courtade, who wrote and directed "Carrie and Jess Save the Universe," is also attached to a feature film titled "Open Wounds" which stars a handful of well-known actors.
“My partner Ryan Leeder and I wrote a script for a horror thriller that was produced last fall, starring Jack Kilmer, Paris Jackson and Oscar nominee Eric Roberts,” he said. “It’s about this young visual effects makeup artist who's trying to get his break in the movies and ends up with a very brutal way of getting inspiration for the makeup wounds that he creates. The film was shot last fall, and we're very excited about it. It's in post-production right now. They've got a really outstanding team working on this film. I'm hoping it'll be out and maybe in theaters later this year or early next year.”
"Moon Ghost" is currently streaming on Tubi, and "Carrie and Jess Save the Universe" is available on Amazon Prime.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Watch 13 ON YOUR SIDE for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, and on your phone.