Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon is finally happening!
I’s tough to believe, but it has already been twenty years since director Scott Glosserman’s meta slasher Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon received its limited theatrical release. Glosserman has always intended to return to the world of Leslie Vernon – and now, a sequel is finally happening. Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon is moving forward, with the original cast returning!
What is Behind the Mask about?
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon was a slasher movie that desconstructed the slasher sub-genre, telling the story of the next great psycho horror slasher, who has given a documentary crew exclusive access to his life as he plans his reign of terror over the sleepy town of Glen Echo. Glosserman directed from a script he wrote with David J. Stieve.
The film starred Nathan Baesel, Angela Goethals, Scott Wilson, Zelda Rubinstein, and Robert Englund.
What do we know about Behind the Mask II?
Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon was officially announced during a cast and crew Q&A at a 20th anniversary screening of Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon last night. Glosserman will again be directing from a script he has written with Stieve, and Baesel, Goethals, and Englund will all be coming back for the sequel.
Glosserman told JoBlo’s own Tyler Nichols, “We have said 20 years is long enough. It’s about time. There’s no other time to anchor this. And horror itself is doing something really interesting, where in this cyclical world where the eras of horror come around and around, there’s a lot to say. And we’re really, really excited about this time and this place and what this is going to reveal.“
Stieve touched on the themes of the film and what it’s like to not have Scott Wilson, who was a prominent character in Leslie Vernon’s story before his passing: “The evolution of the story parallels very much. The metaphor of the script and the story has always been Leslie’s struggle as an artist, how it reflects Nathan’s struggle as an actor, Scott Glosserman, [as a] director, me, [as a] writer. So without giving too much away, you know, part of Leslie’s evolution as a character is that he’s grown and learned and spent 20 years. And, you know, part of that is the people that have come and gone in Leslie’s life. On a personal level, it was a pretty devastating loss for Scott Wilson to pass. I think that we’re going to try to find ways. I think Scott [Glosserman] will find ways to do that beautiful Easter egg type of thing that he does. But Scott Wilson will be there in spirit, one way or another.“
Paper Street Pictures, a genre company led by Aaron B. Koontz and Cameron Burns, is producing the sequel, with Adam F. Goldberg on board as an executive producer.
Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon will be filming this year. Some of the budget will be raised through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, but the movie will be made regardless of how much that campaign pulls in.
Koontz told us, “Part of the reason why we’re doing the crowdfunding campaign, like I did one for Shelby Oaks and learned so much about that process, but we have some high hopes for some other people that we would love to get in this movie that might cost us a pretty penny. And so we’re trying to figure out, you know, maybe the fans can help us. So that’s part of the motivation is like, can we try to do all the crazy things that have been in some of these drafts? What are some things we can add in? So the bigger it gets, the more opportunities we’ll have.” So the crowdfunding campaign will help get certain unnamed actors into the cast.
Glosserman assures, “We’re making the movie either way. But the more the audience gets involved, the bigger we can make it. Bigger set pieces. More cameos. More surprises. This has always been a fan-driven film, and it still is. Aaron, Cam, and the entire Paper Street team never stopped believing there was more story to tell with Leslie. Their support and persistence over the years made a huge difference in getting us here. They’ve built a home for bold horror filmmakers, and I couldn’t imagine making this sequel with anyone else.“
Are you glad to hear that Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon is finally happening? Let us know by leaving a comment below – and while you’re scrolling down, check out some images and video from last night’s event, courtesy of Ryan Cultrera:
@joblomovies Behind the Mask II was announced at the 20th anniversary screening. The film is scheduled to release in 2027. Are you a fan of Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon? #horror #behindthemask #movietok ♬ original sound – JoBlo Movie Network
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