Sam Raimi’s Oz, The Great And Powerful is well on its way to make somewhere in the amount of $70 to $75 million dollars this weekend, and so Disney is already starting to gear up for a sequel to their Wizard Of Oz prequel. The studio has already asked original Oz screenwriter Mitchell Kapner to begin developing a script featuring the further adventures of Kansas circus magician Oscar Diggs in the magical land of Oz set before another Kansas resident’s notable trip there.
But director Raimi won’t be one of those making the return trip. In an interview with Bleeding Cool, Raimi stated that he was quiet happy with turning the reins of a follow up film over to another director. (Warning, spoilers ahead.)
I haven’t planned on directing the sequel. I did leave some loose ends for another director if they want to make the picture. I tried to make it a complete ending, so that the audience would be fulfilled, but I also let Evenora and Theodora get away.
I was attracted to this story but I don’t think the second one would have the thing I would need to get me interested.
Now it does seem that Raimi is leaving himself an out clause there at the end in case Kapner manages to come up with a story that piques his interest. So maybe he’ll change his mind if he has a meeting with Kapner or likes what he reads once a first draft is turned in. But until then transpires, I think we can count him out for now.
