HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS Sequel in Development With Jim Carrey and Ron Howard Returning
It looks like Whoville may be getting another visit from its most infamous resident. More than 25 years after How the Grinch Stole Christmas became a holiday movie phenomenon, Universal and Imagine Entertainment are developing a sequel to the beloved Christmas classic.
While the project is still in the early stages, the plan is to reunite some of the key creative forces that helped make the original such a massive success.
According to reports, Jim Carrey is in talks to return as the Grinch, while Ron Howard is expected to come back to direct. Howard will also produce the film alongside his longtime Imagine Entertainment partner Brian Grazer.
No deals have been finalized yet, but the prospect of Carrey slipping back into the furry green costume is enough to get fans excited.
The new sequel is being written by an impressive comedy team that includes Alec Berg (Barry, Silicon Valley, Curb Your Enthusiasm), Jeff Schaffer (Life, Larry and The Pursuit of Unhappiness, Dave, Curb Your Enthusiasm), and David Mandel (Veep, Curb Your Enthusiasm).
Interestingly, the trio also worked on the screenplay for 2003's The Cat in the Hat, another live-action adaptation of a Dr. Seuss property.
When How the Grinch Stole Christmas hit theaters in November 2000, it became a box office juggernaut. The film earned $260 million domestically and finished its theatrical run with $345 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing movie in North America that year.
The film also earned Academy Award recognition, winning the Oscar for Best Makeup. Makeup artists Rick Baker and Gail Rowell-Ryan transformed Carrey into the Grinch through an extensive process that reportedly took around eight hours each day.
Carrey previously revealed that the makeup application was so intense that he nearly walked away from the project altogether. During an interview last year, the actor explained that he wanted to quit after the first day and even considered returning his $20 million salary.
He ultimately pushed through the difficult production with help from a specialist who trained CIA agents to endure torture situations. The makeup process was eventually streamlined and reduced to about three hours per day, making it far more manageable.
When preivously asked if he would come back to the role, Carrey said: “Oh, gosh, you know, if we could figure out the Grinch. The thing about it is, on the day, I do that with a ton of makeup and can hardly breathe. It was an extremely excruciating process.
“The children were in my mind all the time. ‘It’s for the kids. It’s for the kids. It’s for the kids.’ And now, with motion capture and things like that, I could be free to do other things. Anything is possible in this world.”
The Grinch himself has been part of popular culture for nearly seven decades. The character first appeared in 1957 when Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, published How the Grinch Stole Christmas!.
The story was inspired by Geisel's growing frustration with the commercialization of the holiday season and followed a grumpy outsider who attempts to ruin Christmas by stealing presents from the residents of Whoville.
The story's popularity led to the iconic 1966 animated television special featuring Boris Karloff as both the narrator and the Grinch. Co-director Chuck Jones also made a creative choice that would become permanent, changing the Grinch from his original black-and-white appearance in the book to the now-famous shade of green.
What's especially impressive is how well the 2000 live-action adaptation continues to perform. Even after all these years, the film remains one of the most-watched holiday movies on streaming services. According to Nielsen rankings, it has landed among the Top 10 most-streamed Christmas movies every year for the past five years.
During the 2024 holiday season, the movie reached No. 2 on Nielsen's overall movie streaming chart, generating 962 million minutes viewed between December 15 and December 28.
The only film ahead of it was the annual holiday champion Home Alone. Carrey's version of the Grinch also outperformed Illumination's 2018 animated film Dr. Seuss' The Grinch during the same period.
That kind of staying power helps explain why Universal is eager to revisit Whoville. Story details are being kept under wraps, but if Carrey and Howard officially sign on, this could end up being one of the biggest holiday movie events in years.
For fans who grew up watching the original, the idea of seeing the Grinch return to the big screen is a Christmas gift that many probably never expected to receive.
Source: THR