After over 30 years since the release of the original film, fans are curious about The Nightmare Before Christmas 2. Originally directed by Henry Selick with a story developed by gothic-horror mastermind Tim Burton, The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) became a cult classic. While sequel plans have come and gone over the years, a full movie sequel has yet to happen.
Plot of Nightmare Before Christmas 2
The sequel could adapt the follow-up novel Long Live the Pumpkin Queen. “Sally Skellington is the official, newly-minted Pumpkin Queen after a whirlwind courtship with her true love, Jack, who Sally adores with every inch of her fabric seams — if only she could say the same for her new role as Queen of Halloween Town. Cast into the spotlight and tasked with all sorts of queenly duties, Sally can’t help but wonder if all she’s done is trade her captivity under Dr. Finkelstein for a different cage.
But when Sally and Zero accidentally uncover a long-hidden doorway to an ancient realm called Dream Town in the forest Hinterlands, she’ll unknowingly set into motion a chain of sinister events that put her future as Pumpkin Queen, and the future of Halloween Town itself, into jeopardy. Can Sally discover what it means to be true to herself and save the town she’s learned to call home, or will her future turn into her worst… well, nightmare?”
The sequel could take inspiration from video games. Designed as a sequel to the original film, Capcom released The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie’s Revenge in 2004 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The game was developed in collaboration with Tim Burton. It followed the revival of Oogie Boogie after Jack Skellington goes on an adventure to make this next Halloween the best one ever.
When Will it Come Out?
After the first film’s success in the late ’90s, Disney greenlit a sequel to the original. Speaking with About.com in 2006, director Henry Selick addressed Disney’s plan from 2002. “There has been discussions over the years about a possible sequel. When those discussions came up about seven years ago, it was unsettling that it was suggested this time it would have to be done in CG. I’m glad that did not happen. But as far as coming up with ideas for a sequel, you have to admit there are a lot of other great holidays for Jack Skellington to take over.”
Tim Burton said, “I was always very protective of [‘Nightmare’], not to do sequels or things of that kind. You know, ‘Jack visits Thanksgiving world’ or other kinds of things, just because I felt the movie had a purity to it and the people that like it. Because it’s not a mass-market kind of thing, it was important to kind of keep that purity of it. I try to respect people and keep the purity of the project as much as possible.”
Chris Sarandon (voice artist of Jack Skellington) told Comicbook.com, “I’d crawl on my hands and knees, from the East Coast to the West Coast, in the spring or the fall, to do it again. Of course, I would. I love that character and I love that I’m part of a legacy of that character as well.” In 2009, Selick told Blastr, “It would have to depend. It’s a hard thing to top in terms of story. That particular collision of nightmares is perfect. I don’t know if Jack Skellington trying to take over President’s Day weekend would be as good [laughs]. If there’s a great idea, I would certainly love to [do it]. The film has a long life.”
2022 saw the release of a technical sequel to the film in the form of Shea Ernshaw’s young adult novel Long Live the Pumpkin Queen. The Nightmare Before Christmas is now available to stream on Disney+.
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