Happy Death Day 2U
Happy Death Day 2U is a 2019 American science fiction black comedy slasher film written and directed by Christopher Landon. A sequel to 2017's "Happy Death Day", it stars Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Suraj Sharma, and Steve Zissis. The film again follows Tree Gelbman (Rothe), now trapped in the same time loop of a different iteration of her world. Jason Blum again serves as a producer through his Blumhouse Productions company. The film was released in the United States on February 13, 2019, by Universal Pictures. Critics praised Rothe's performance, as well as the  film's shift to a more sci-fi tone, although some noted it as derivative of the first film. It grossed $64million worldwide against a $9million budget. A third film, "Happy Death Day to Us", is in active development. Plot. College student Ryan wakes up in his car on Tuesday, September 19. Returning to his dorm room, he walks in on his roommate Carter and Carter's girlfriend, Tree. He resumes work on an experimental quantum reactor with fellow students Samar and Dre. After Bronson, the school dean, shuts down the project for triggering several power outages, Ryan  is murdered by someone dressed as Babyface and wakes up again on Tuesday the 19th. Tree explains her experience reliving Monday the 18th, and she and Carter agree to help Ryan. They learn the reactor was responsible for creating the loop. The new Babyface tracks Ryan down, but Tree unmasks him to reveal another Ryan. The second Ryan warns that the original must die for the loop to close. Terrified, Ryan activates the reactor, releasing a powerful energy pulse that knocks everyone unconscious. Tree wakes up in Carter's room on Monday the 18th, and relives her original time loop , but she soon realizes things are different after finding out that Carter is now dating a nicer Danielle. Ryan theorizes that the reactor caused Tree to drift into another dimension. When Tree learns her mother is still alive in this new reality, she decides to stay. That night, Tree goes to the hospital to intercept serial killer John Tombs before he escapes but is confronted by a police officer. Babyface kills the officer, and Tree runs into Lori at the elevator, realizing she isn't the killer in this reality. Lori tells Tree that Babyface cannot be Tombs because  she just took him in for surgery. Babyface stabs Lori, then chases Tree to the roof, where she accidentally falls to her death. She wakes at the beginning of her loop and demands that Ryan and his team help her escape it, requiring they test dozens of algorithms. At Carter's suggestion, Tree serves as the group's recorder, killing herself at the end of each day so they can start again. Eventually, her injuries catch up with her, and she faints. Waking up in the hospital, Tree steals a gun to go after Tombs, only to find Lori already  dead. Tombs, disguised as Babyface, attacks, and Tree shoots him dead. However, a second Babyface appears, forcing Tree to kill herself and Babyface. The group finally discovers the correct algorithm, but a technical issue forces a delay. Faced with a choice of which reality she wants to be in when both time loops close, Tree decides to remain in the current dimension. Carter urges Tree to consider the consequences of living a life that is not truly hers, and states that her experience with grief helped shape the person she is now. Tree hides from Babyface in a hotel. That  evening, the news reports that Carter was murdered trying to save Lori at the hospital. Tree kills herself by exploding a power station, deactivating the reactor so she can save Carter and Lori. The loop restarts and Tree decides to return to her own reality. She advises Lori to end her affair with her professor Dr. Butler, discovers that Danielle is cheating on Carter and has a final conversation with her mother. Bronson confiscates the reactor before the group can activate it. Believing she is too weak to survive another loop, Tree insists they retrieve the device. The group enlists  Danielle to distract Bronson while they recover the reactor. As Ryan readies the device, Tree goes to the hospital to rescue Lori from Tombs, but is trapped by the second Babyface—revealed to be Dr. Butler trying to bury the evidence of his affair with Lori. Dr. Butler's wife Stephanie appears and shoots Lori, revealing she is in league with her husband, but he betrays and kills her as well. Tree outsmarts Butler and kills him. Lori survives, and Tree and Carter kiss as the reactor activates, sending Tree back to her original dimension on Tuesday the 19th. Later , Tree, Carter, Ryan, Samar, and Dre are escorted by agents to a DARPA laboratory, where the reactor has been moved for further experimentation. When the agents say they need a test subject in order to see how the machine works, Tree says she knows the perfect test subject. In her bedroom, Danielle wakes up, screaming in horror. Production. Development. Ahead of the first film's release, director Christopher Landon talked about the possibility of a sequel, focusing on why Tree went into the time loop stating "The whole idea for my sequel is actually already in this movie". Actress Jessica  Rothe in an interview in 2018 stated that while most horror sequels retread the original, Landon's pitch instead "elevates the movie from being a horror movie into a "Back to the Future" type of genre film where the sequel joins us right from where we left off, it explains a lot of things in the first one that didn't get explained, and it elevates everything." The sequel was officially announced with filming scheduled to begin on May 10, 2018. Casting. Most of the original actors returned, including Rothe, Modine, Broussard, and Matthews. In addition, Suraj Sharma and Sarah  Yarkin were cast. Filming. Principal photography on the film began on May 14, 2018, in New Orleans, Louisiana. In November 2018, Ben Baudhuin was confirmed to be the film's editor. Music. On February 15, 2019, Back Lot Music released the original motion picture soundtrack for the film, with music produced by Bear McCreary. The soundtrack did not feature Lizzo's cover of "Stayin' Alive". On January 2, 2019, Back Lot Music released a cover of "Stayin' Alive" performed by Lizzo as a stand-alone promotional single for the movie. The song plays throughout the first set of end credits  before the post-credit scene. Release. "Happy Death Day 2U" was released on February 13, 2019. It was originally scheduled to be released one day later, on Valentine's Day. However, the film was rescheduled after a request from a relative of a victim of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, which happened exactly one year prior. The film was released digitally on April 30, 2019, and on Blu-ray and DVD on May 14. Distributor Shout! Factory is scheduled to release both "Happy Death Day" and "Happy Death Day 2U" on 4K disc on April 26, 2022. Reception . Box office. "Happy Death Day 2U" grossed $28.1million in the United States and Canada, and $36.5million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $64.5million, against a production budget of $9million. In the United States and Canada, "Happy Death Day 2U" was released alongside "Isn't It Romantic", and was projected to gross $17–20million from 3,207 theaters in its opening weekend. Opening without Tuesday night previews, the film made $992,000 on its first day, Wednesday, and $2.7million on Valentine's Day, Thursday, for a two-day total of $3.7million. It went on  to debut to $9.8million over the weekend (a five-day total of $13.5million), finishing $3.5million below expectations and fifth at the box office. The film dropped 48% in its second weekend, making $5million and finishing seventh. Critical response. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "A funnier follow-up with a sci-fi bent, "Happy Death Day 2U" isn't as fiendishly fresh as its predecessor, but fans of the original may still find this a sequel worth celebrating ." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, the same score as the first film, while those at PostTrak gave it an average 2.5 out of 5 stars. Kimber Myers, writing for the "Los Angeles Times", said: ""Happy Death Day 2U" can't quite replicate the feelings of joy and discovery of the original, but Landon deserves credit for varying the tune, while still playing the hits  that will please the fans of its predecessor." Meg Downey, critic for "IGN", praised the film, grading it an 8.5/10 and writing, ""Happy Death Day 2U" deserves a healthy amount of praise for pushing its pedal to the metal all the way through. The level of risk-taking is refreshing, even when it's not completely successful at every single turn." Novelization. On February 26, 2019, Blumhouse Books released a novelization written by Aaron Hartzler titled "Happy Death Day & Happy Death Day 2U", to coincide with the second film's release. Sequel. Regarding the possibility of a third film, writer  and director Christopher Landon has stated that he "definitely [has an idea for] the third movie in [his] head", while producer Jason Blum has said that if "enough people see this movie, we're gonna make a third movie, we want to make a third movie". In March 2019, following the film's less-than-projected box office gross, Blum said a third film was "not very [likely] but not impossible". In July 2019, Landon confirmed that a third film is not in development. In August 2019, Landon stated he had an outline written for the third film and  believed he would eventually share it in some medium, be it another movie or not. In 2020, Blum said that while other studios would have cancelled a follow-up to "Happy Death Day 2U" following its financial underperformance, a third movie "is still on my radar in some shape or form". He later clarified that he was hard at work to get a deal done to make the film. In September 2020, Landon confirmed a third film, titled "Happy Death Day To Us", was in active development, with Rothe reprising her role. In November 2020, Landon stated that the script  was ready to go and was awaiting approval from Universal.