Recently, Variety published an article detailing everything they knew about I Am Legend 2. That headline alone would’ve caught my eye, but it also indicated that Will Smith would reprise his role as virologist Robert Neville. That really piqued my interest.
“How the heck are they going to pull that off?” I wondered.
It’s been a minute since I Am Legend was released, but some endings are more memorable than others. That was one of them because it was so explosive. Literally. In true Hollywood style, Robert Neville went out in a blaze of glory.
Aside from the fact that Neville died, the movie also ended as happily ever after as it could. A sequel never seemed plausible, even though the original was a hit. That’s kind of the downside of killing off the A-list star who headlined it. (I guess they could’ve done a prequel. But since they incorporated flashbacks into the original, that would’ve been hard to pull off too.)
However, Variety reported that The Last of Us video game inspired I Am Legend writer Avika Goldsman to start crafting I Am Legend 2. He’s now signed a multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Pictures, which the sequel is a part of, and in it, Will Smith will reprise his role.
Wait. What? How?
I Am Legend 2 Arises from Alternate Ending
As is sometimes the case with movies, I Am Legend had more than one ending. In this case, the fiery theatrical ending that I remember and an alternate ending, which I didn’t even know existed. In the alternate, Neville survives.
So that explains how Smith will be able to reprise his role.
Variety emphasized details about the sequel are being kept under wraps. However, they did speak with Goldsman a little about it, who based the script for I Am Legend on the 1954 novel of the same name by Richard Matheson. The sequel will “follow the ending of Matheson’s novel and the original film’s alternate ending in which Smith’s character survives.”
Goldsman also revealed what else will influence the sequel’s storyline:
“What Matheson was talking about was that man’s time on the planet as the dominant species had come to an end. That’s a really interesting thing we’re going to get to explore. There will be a little more fidelity to the original text.”
Confirmed Cast
In addition to Smith, who is also a producer on the film, Michael B. Jordan (Creed, Black Panther) will join Smith as both an actor and producer on the movie. No word yet if Alicia Braga will reprise her role, but she pretty much indicated to Variety she would if the opportunity presented itself.
Check-In
Did you ever see I Am Legend‘s alternate ending? Or were you only familiar with the theatrical one, too?
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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I didn’t know there was an alternate ending. Kinda cheating. Then again, it’s fiction, so it’s fine.
HA! I love that, Vera. “it’s fiction, so it’s fine.” Has a nice ring to it!
Ha, now I have to rewatch it (and read the book) because, truthfully and abashedly, I don’t remember either as it’s been a while since I saw it.
Or maybe I was just so upset at…well, you know.
Yes I do because I always fast forward during that part! But if it’s any consolation, I read that Abbey the German Shepherd is now 15 and still alive IRL!