An impending comedyhorror moviereboot from aStranger Thingsstar has gotten an update about its script and a potential returning cast member.Stranger Thingsis a widely popular Netflix series that follows multiple generations of Hawkins, Indiana residents facing supernatural foes, though it particularly focuses on the pre-teens and teenagers. The show draws influences from many horror, fantasy, and science fiction properties from throughout the 1980s, particularly Dungeons & Dragons as well as the works of Stephen King and Steven Spielberg.
Although the Netflix series is still ongoing, during its long hiatuses, many members of theStranger Thingscasthave starred in horror or horror-adjacent movies. This includes David Harbour (Jim Hopper) playing Santa inViolent Night, Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield) starring in the Netflix summer camp slasherFear Street Part Two: 1978, Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler) taking a role in the Henry James adaptationThe Turning, and Joe Keery (Steve Harrington) playing a killer rideshare driver inSpree.The cast’s horror movie roster is continuing to growwith the upcoming reboot of a 1990s cult classic.
Finn Wolfhard Shares An Update On The Idle Hands Reboot
He Is Co-Writing The Movie With Billy Bryk
In November 2024, it was announced thatFinn Wolfhard would return once again to the horror genre by co-writing a remake of 1999’sIdle Handswith Billy Bryk, with whom there is the potential for him to co-direct. The original movie followed a lazy teenager (futureFinal Destinationstar Devon Sawa) having his hand possessed by a murderous demonic entity. The star-studdedIdle Handscastalso included Seth Green, Jessica Alba, Vivica A. Fox, Sean Whalen, and Fred Willard.
Idle Handswas a flop, grossing $4.2 million against its $25 million budget, but it later became a cult classic.
While speaking withComicBookabout their new slasher comedyHell of a Summer, which they co-directed, co-wrote, and in which they co-star, Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk discussed howIdle Handsis shaping up and whether Sawa might return. Wolfhard said thatboth the duo directing and Devon Sawa returning are “TBD,“but Bryk added that they are “excited about the script,” which feels like a “cool, full circle moment” because the originalIdle Handswas one of their influences onHell of a Summer, which also stars Abby Quinn, Fred Hechinger, and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai. Read their full quotes below:
Finn Wolfhard:TBD. TBD on [us directing and bringing back Devon Sawa], I would say.
Billy Bryk:We’re just super excited about the script, and the story, and the idea. I mean, Sawa is a legend. That performance in that first movie is so incredible…that movie was really a major influence on [Hell of a Summer] in a lot of ways, so it feels like a cool, full circle moment that we’re kind of developing the reimagining of Idle Hands.
What This Means For Idle Hands
Devon Sawa’s Return Could Still Happen
Given the way that Bryk and Wolfhard are talking, it seems that thehorror movieis still far too early in its development for any concrete decisions to have been made. However, should the project continue to move forward,it seems entirely possible that Sawa could return. He has continued to take horror roles since the 1990s, most recently when he joined theHeart Eyescastand played multiple characters in theChuckyseries. Additionally, in 2020, he toldComicBookthat “if there was one film that I want to do a sequel to that would be [Idle Hands.]”
Idle Hands
Cast
Idle Hands is a horror-comedy directed by Rodman Flender. Released in 1999, the film follows 17-year-old stoner Anton, whose lack of ambition leads to unexpected chaos when his hand becomes possessed. Amid humorous and supernatural events, Anton must confront this demonic force threatening his way of life.
