Jenna Ortega Wants in on GREMLINS 3 – And She’s Ready for the Call
The Gremlins franchise has been dormant on the big screen for decades, but talk of a third film have been floating around. With Warner Bros. reportedly developing a new installment from original writer Chris Columbus, it seems like a return could finally be on the horizon.
If the movie does move forward, Jenna Ortega, the young actress, who has already solidified her place in horror and cult cinema with roles in Scream, Beetlejuice, and Wednesday, wants in on the action.
While walking the SXSW red carpet for the premiere of her latest film, Death of a Unicorn, Ortega was asked by IMDb what mythical creature she’d love to see back on screen.
Without hesitation, she revealed her childhood love for Gremlins and even pitched herself for a sequel. "Ya know what I used to love as a kid? Gremlins," she said with a grin. "Would love… Gremlins 3? 4? Call me."
If a new Gremlins film does get the green light, it would follow Joe Dante’s Gremlins (1984) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). It’s hard to believe, but it’s been 35 years since the last time those mischievous creatures wreaked havoc on the big screen.
Despite the long gap, the franchise has remained a fan favorite, with Gremlins: The Wild Batch, an animated prequel series on Max, keeping the legacy alive.
Speaking of which, new episodes of The Wild Batch return April 10, 2025. But as for Gremlins 3? Well, the ball is in Warner Bros.' court.
What he do know about Gremlins 3 is that it is planned as a true third installment rather than a reboot set 30 years after the events of the original film, continuing the mischievous and monstrous adventures.
Columbus previously offered an update on a third film, saying: “I would love to do it. I wrote a script, so there is an existing script. We’re working out some rights issues right now, so we’re just trying to figure out when the best time to make that film would be.
“I would still do it the same way – I would do it as tangible puppets, not CGI. Maybe having — you know we had one stop-motion scene in the first Gremlins, but I don’t think I’d use much CGI in Gremlins 3.”
The script was written by screenwriter Carl Ellsworth who previously shared that the film was “thought of as a direct sequel mostly to the first film—not discounting the second one by any stretch, but I saw it as very much a passing-the-baton story, staying in the tone of the original.
“I think that helped get me the job: I said, ‘Yeah, there’s a lot of humor in the movie, helped by the classic Jerry Goldsmith score that gives us a license to laugh, but it’s first and foremost a horror movie.’”
Ellsworth went on to say: “These little creatures—what they’re really doing, they’re cold-blooded little murderers, you know? They’re psychotic little creatures that are killing everybody.
“So that’s where it all started. I tried to preserve the humor, but at the same time, I was starting with the
foundation of this being a horror movie, which I was really thrilled about.”
When previously talking about the script, Columbus said that it was “twisted and dark.” I would love to see this movie get made, and it would have not only seen the return of the original star Galligan as Billy Peltzer, it would have also brought back his girlfriend, played by Phoebe Cates.
“But, it’s explained that “Gizmo was at the very core of the story; it explored more of the mythology and the history of the Gremlins.”