A School of Rock sequel isn't out of the question for Richard Linklater. The original film starred Jack Black and Miranda Cosgrove.
In an interview with Unilad, Linklater revealed his condition for a School of Rock sequel. Previously, star Black said that he wanted writer Mike White (The White Lotus) back. For Linklater, while there haven't been formal discussions regarding a sequel, the franchise has to come back with a purpose.
“It’s so funny, people will always say stuff like, ‘Oh Ethan Hawke said in an interview he would be up for another Before film.'” Linklater said.
“Sure, it has been a long time. There was talk of it years ago but I’d love to work with Jack again. But there’s got to be a reason. There’s got to be something,” he continued. “Don’t do it unless there’s an idea, the reason we did two Before [movies] is there was a good idea screaming out, there’s something to express about this.”
He named an example of a sequel with something to say. Top Gun: Maverick, which featured Hit Man star Glen Powell, was his film of choice. “Yeah, you've got to be incorporating that time, it resonates, it means something to people,” he said.
“Victory lap” sequels vs. justified sequels
But not all sequels are created equal. Linklater has his own term for sequels that are merely a cash grab: “Victory lap sequels.”
“There's another type of sequel I usually call the ‘victory lap sequel,'” he revealed. “They're usually out pretty quick, they're economic, and everyone knows it.
“We're way beyond that, so why would you do it unless there's something specific to tell[?] There's always a good idea to be had,” he concluded.
School of Rock came out in 2003 and followed Dewey Finn (Jack Black), a struggling rock star. He gets fired from his band and takes a job as a substitute teacher at a prep school. He discovers his students' talent and forms a band to win the Battle of the Bands to afford his rent.
At the box office, School of Rock was a hit. It grossed over $131 million worldwide against a $35 million budget. However, more than two decades later, the film still hasn't received a sequel.
Mike White wrote the School of Rock script that Richard Linklater directed. At this point in his career, White had written episodes of Dawson's Creek and Freaks and Geeks. After School of Rock, he wrote another Black-led film, Nacho Libre. They would collaborate again years later on The D Train.
Richard Linklater movies
Richard Linklater rose to fame thanks to his early films Slacker and Dazed and Confused. He then co-wrote and directed Before Sunrise, which starred Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. The film would spawn two sequels, Before Sunset (2004) and Before Midnight (2013).
His other film credits include The Newton Boys, Waking Life, School of Rock, and a Bad News Bears remake. Linklater also directed Me and Orson Welles and the ambitious Boyhood film, which was filmed over the course of a decade.
As a teenager, Glen Powell appeared in Linklater's Fast Food Nation. They would reunite years later when Powell starred in Linklater's animated film, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood.
In 2023, Powell and Linklater co-wrote Hit Man. Powell would star in the film and Linklater directed it. Netflix will release the film on its streaming service on June 7.
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