Ron Howard On WILLOW Sequel: "Never Say Never"
It would be an absolute delight to see Ron Howard make a sequel to George Lucas' Willow one day. I absolutely love that film. As I say this, I realize that I've never shown it to my kids! It looks like I'll be remedying that this coming week.
It's been 30 years since Willow was released, and I can't believe that it's been that long. The film starred Warwick Davis and Val Kilmer, and it would be so cool to see them return for another adventure. Even if they didn't come back, I would still love a sequel set in that world.
During a Q&A on Reddit, Howard was asked about the sequel, and it was great that he didn't just brush it off and say it will never happen. He kept it positive and said:
"Right now, the Lucasfilm team led by Kathleen Kennedy, who is an old dear friend, is entirely myopically focused on the Star Wars universe as you can imagine. So I think the immediate possibility of another Willow movie is probably not on the front burner. But Warwick Davis is such a cool guy, and he’s continued to evolve as a talent … man, he’s Willow! And a grown-up Willow could be kind of cool, so, I’d say never say never."
He went on to say that he'd like to have a second chance to explore that world that he and Lucas collaborated on back in 1988. He explained:
"You know there are things about the movie Willow, as much affection as I have for it and as much affection as fans have for it that, you know, I would love to have a second chance with. George Lucas was so trusting; I was still fairly green, I always say it was a little like me doing my doctoral thesis working with George Lucas on that movie Willow. And I think today I could make it even more dynamic, I could make it cooler, I could make the funny stuff funnier, but all that said, you know Willow was a great experience and I’m really glad it sort of lives in peoples memory. Or younger people see it today and still find something to really like about it."
I know there's a good chance that a Willow sequel could never happen, but after reading Howard's comments, I really hope that it does. It could be pretty incredible. We don't see fantasy movies like that anymore! It was just such a wonderful film with wonderful characters and I think Howard could capture that magic again.