DETECTIVE PIKACHU Still In "Active Development" Despite Seemingly Having No Creative Team Attached

DETECTIVE PIKACHU Still In "Active Development" Despite Seemingly Having No Creative Team Attached

It's been a while since we've heard anything definitive about the Pokémon franchise's live-action future, and we now have a very interesting update on where things stand with the Detective Pikachu sequel.

News
By JoshWilding - Feb 04, 2023 10:02 AM EST
Filed Under: Pokémon
Source: GameFragger.com

A few years before The Last of Us was being hailed as the greatest videogame adaptation ever made (an assessment we'd definitely agree with), that accolade arguably deserved to go to Detective Pikachu. The first live-action Pokémon movie received positive reviews from fans and critics alike and earned a respectable $340 million at the worldwide box office. 

A sequel seemed like a given and was actually announced prior to the first instalment's release in 2019. Sonic the Hedgehog scribe Oren Uziel was attached to write the movie, though Polygon (via GameFragger.com) is reporting that while he did end up penning an outline and screenplay, he's no longer working on the project. 

However, a representative for Legendary Entertainment tells the site that Detective Pikachu 2 remains "in active development." The studio declined to reveal any further details, including who is working on it, while The Pokémon Company declined to comment...needless to say, that's not the most promising update! 

Detective Pikachu writers Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez recently confirmed that they're not currently involved, and we're guessing these apparent delays are down to how protective The Pokémon Company is of the iconic franchise.

We also can't help but wonder whether the news that broke back in June 2021 may have something to do with Detective Pikachu 2 being sidelined.

Netflix entered a deal with The Pokémon Company that summer to develop a live-action TV series. Legendary, meanwhile, is now working with Sony Pictures instead of Warner Bros., and while they continue to share some properties with the studio (Warners co-financed Detective Pikachu) the sequel may be caught in the middle of some complicated red tape. 

The fact the movie hasn't been completely scrapped is a positive, though, and we're hoping this means we'll eventually get some news about Netflix's plans for the franchise. You'd think live-action Pokémon would be all over our screens by now, but the pandemic seems to have slowed things down on that front, so we may continue having to be patient. 

Do you hope Detective Pikachu 2 happens? Weigh in with your thoughts below.

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AC1
AC1 - 2/4/2023, 11:02 AM
I'm a massive Pokémon fan and I was genuinely surprised by how well this movie turned out. Was disappointed when it seemed like the sequel had been scrapped so part of me is kinda excited that it's not completely dead, but I also can't really see how a sequel would work considering how the first movie ended in a way that made it seem pretty definitively standalone in nature.

I'm kinda just of the opinion that future live action Pokémon projects should be considered as canon with this movie, but I'm not 100% sure a direct sequel makes sense.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/4/2023, 11:07 AM
@AC1 - yeah, I liked the movie a lot too and wouldn't mind more set in this movie's universe. A sequel though? Much rather see a spin-off with Mewtwo.
bobevanz
bobevanz - 2/4/2023, 12:43 PM
@AC1 - I absolutely hated the twist at the end with Mewtwo and Pikachu, but it's a kids movie so I'll allow it
AC1
AC1 - 2/4/2023, 1:01 PM
@bobevanz - The human/Pokémon merging thing? I may be wrong about this but I'm pretty sure the Detective Pikachu videogame never actually resolved its own story, instead being open ended to set up a sequel that has been in the works for years. If that's the case then the twist in the movie, as odd as it kinda was, was probably a case of the movie trying to resolve the story when the game they were adapting hadn't actually gotten that far yet. Kinda like how the Game of Thrones TV series overtook the books and basically had to make up their own ending. But TPCI are notoriously protective of the IP and incredibly selective over who they work with so I'm sure they'd have to have given the film production the green light to go ahead with that ending.
AC1
AC1 - 2/4/2023, 1:06 PM
@bkmeijer1 - I'd actually love a live action adaptation of the mainline games. Whether it's in movies, taking a similar approach to Marvel where each generation of the games is kinda treated like a phase in the MCU, or a TV/streaming format where each generation is a season of a show, I think it could work really well. Some changes would obviously need to be made because the gameplay can be a bit repetitive at times and might not translate directly in an adaptation, but overall I think the bones of it are there.

Something like Stand By Me but for a family audience and with sci-fi/fantasy elements and magical creatures 😅
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/4/2023, 2:23 PM
@AC1 - honestly, I never played the games so I have no idea if it's adaptable. I just wanna see the cool Pokemon I know from the few movies I've seen
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 2/4/2023, 11:03 AM
''You'd think live-action Pokémon would be all over our screens by now, but the pandemic seems to have slowed things down on that front''

I kinda doubt it had anything to do with the pandemic. Instead it's probably just the Pokomon Company being very selective who they wanna work with.
BGarlz92
BGarlz92 - 2/4/2023, 11:38 AM
The film was great, it's the rare double win of an Anime and Video Game Adaptation working f***ing brilliantly. I loved it and have been hoping for a sequel for a while now.
Fares
Fares - 2/4/2023, 12:23 PM
I liked that film more than I thought I would. I don't think it gets talked enough about when the subject of good video game adaptations is brought up. So yeah I would love a second one.
ModHaterSLADE
ModHaterSLADE - 2/4/2023, 12:28 PM
Great video game movie.
bobevanz
bobevanz - 2/4/2023, 12:44 PM
*checks how much the first made* I wonder why they'll do a sequel 🤡
TheWinkler
TheWinkler - 2/4/2023, 2:07 PM
@bobevanz - It made 433mil off of a 150mil budget?
Scarilian
Scarilian - 2/4/2023, 9:45 PM
@TheWinkler -
Normally to establish a franchise they'd want:
- Enough to cover the original budget, which is often downplayed ($150m)
- Enough to cover marketing costs which is normally the budget all over again ($150m)
- Enough to make a sequel ($150m)

$433m off a $150m budget would be enough to consider a success but just under the general idea of what they'd probably have wanted to secure a sequel.

I think also it's a question of where would they take the sequel? The main appeal was Pikachu and Ryan Reynolds voicing that character. Remove that and the film is generally forgettable unfortunately. It did not generate as much of a buzz as expected.
TheLobster
TheLobster - 2/4/2023, 1:54 PM
First film was pretty good.. until that third act and stupid plot twist with Reynolds. Goddamn they dropped the ball hard with that lmao
DudeGuy
DudeGuy - 2/4/2023, 5:55 PM
The first one was a pleasant surprise. Would really like to see another.
DocSpock
DocSpock - 2/4/2023, 7:03 PM


I'm glad my grandweasels are all too old and don't care about kiddie crap like this so I don't get forced to take them to it.

Hard pass.
Scarilian
Scarilian - 2/4/2023, 9:57 PM
The first was fine, not particularly memorable. I think the best option would be scrapping the supporting characters and large scale and focusing primarily on say Ryan Reynolds teaming up with his Pikachu to solve a mystery. Ryan Reynolds would get framed (someone using a Ditto obviously) but realizes he can only investigate if not part of the police force. This results in a smaller scale mystery.

Pikachu wouldn't speak, but after the events of the last movie would have an interest in solving cases and would find clues and occasionally shock Ryan Reynolds as a running gag which would probably be used to defeat the films main antagonist. The villain of the film would obviously be a Pokemon, I'd personally lean to the villain being Meowth, in particular a Meowth owned by a high ranking member of the city who we originally suspect is the antagonist for a bait & switch moment.

Meowth would be able to talk and it'd be the 'origin story' of this portrayal of Meowth, having been brought in off the streets but having a desire for power and status, learning human language. After he's defeated, a post-credit scene would tease him being broken out by two mysterious individuals (Jessie & James) potentially teasing them as the antagonists for the sequel and setting up the introduction of Giovanni.
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