Released in March of 2010, MGM’s raunchy comedy Hot Tub Time Machine went on to gross a respectable $60 million-plus at the worldwide box office, but aside from some rumors, things have been relatively quiet on the sequel front. That is, until the studio tallied up their home video receipts. As with many high-concept comedies, the audience reportedly exploded as the film hit Blu-ray, DVD, Netflix, etc. (some reports indicate an additional $25-30 million gross) and according to The Hollywood Reporter, sequel talk has now begun.
MGM has entered early talks with stars Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson and Clark Duke to return, with Corddry even possibly having a hand in the script stage with the original director Steve Pink, who would also return. One major star, however, is not part of the talks, as John Cusack is reportedly not involved. After a string of bombs and disappointments from The Raven to The Paperboy to the straight-to-DVD The Factory and the unreleased Shanghai, one wonders why he doesn’t join in on the fun, but perhaps he will down the line.
As a major fan of the silly, but often hilarious, original, I’d love to see this one come together. While it’s still in the very early stages, if the current talks proceed, word is that it would go into production quickly (i.e. a possible release in 2014). As for a possible plot, I wouldn’t doubt the filmmakers to throw out another Back to the Future nod (after Crispin Glover‘s great cameo in the original) and have our group jump ahead many years, but we’ll have to wait and see.
What would you want to see in a sequel to Hot Tub Time Machine?