James Wan is “Finished with the Horror Genre”
Looks like James Wan is getting out of the horror game right when he’s on top of the world. Hot on the heels of the financial and critical success of “The Conjuring”, James Wan has announced that “Insidious Chapter 2″ will be his last horror film.
A few days ago director James Wan was being interviewed by MovieFone when they asked him about the likelihood of an “Insidious Chapter 3.” To which he responded with a surprising revelation:
I’m going to go on record and say I am finished with the horror genre. ”Conjuring” and “Insidious 2″ are my two last scary movies. I spent the last ten years of my life doing this. It’s time for a change, for goodness sake!
Say it ain’t so James! In my opinion, Wan’s horror films have only gotten progressively better. After seeing “The Conjuring”, I’ve been eagerly anticipating the release of “Insidious 2″ and whatever future horror films he was going to announce. Now this latest news has put a kibosh on all that. Why would someone leave the horror genre when it’s treating him so well right now? Wan has an answer for this and it’s a reasonable one when you consider the fate of so many other horror directors.
Hollywood puts you in a box. If you do a successful comedy, then you’re known as The Comedy Guy. If you do a successful car chase movie, then you become that guy. So I’m a student of cinema, so I just want to make sure I get the chance to make other kinds of films.
James Wan is looking to successfully escape that box with his next project, “Fast and the Furious 7.” A film that will take him far from the horror genre at break-neck speeds. It’s sad to hear that he’s decided to make his exit, but ultimately, it may be for the best. Whatever James Wan does next, I’m excited to see him grow and further develop his skills. Besides, you can never really say never in Hollywood. If the right script comes around at the right time, Wan may return to his horror roots. But for now, we bid you adieu and wish you luck on future endeavors.
Still, this raises questions about the future of the films he brought to life. We already know that the Conjuring 2 is in development and it seems safe to say that he won’t be directing that film. And who could possibly take over the Insidious series if they decide to make a third film? It’ll be interesting to see how the studios fill in the gap that Wan will be leaving in the wake of this announcement.
However, I have to imagine that Wan won’t completely abandon these projects. Whether it’s serving as a producer or possibly even a co-writer, I imagine Wan will want to continue to be involved in this genre in one way or another. The ideal situation is that with Wan leaving, new directors will get a chance to take on these big franchises and we’ll possibly discover some new creative talents that have been waiting in the wings. It’ll be interesting to see where this news leads.
