I Am Legend 2 is once again the talk of the town after its lead star, Will Smith, gives a promising update. Sixteen years after the first movie’s release, how could Dr. Robert Neville return in the second movie after he died in the previous film was a big puzzle to many. So, here’s everything we know so far.
Will Smith Talks About I Am Legend 2
Will Smith confirmed his return to I Am Legend 2, along with the Creed III star Michael B Jordan. Jada Pinkett Smith’s husband gave new details about the highly anticipated sequel at the recent Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. By the looks of it, it will soon see the light of day, with the script by Akiva Goldsman now ready.
“I have a call with Michael B. Jordan tomorrow. We’re really close, script just came in,” he said.
Knowing his character, Robert, died in the first movie, it was a puzzle how Smith could return alive to I Am Legend 2. For fans who only saw its theatrical version, they witnessed Neville die after he charged into the Darkseekers’ leader with a grenade, eventually killing them, the other Darkseekers, and even himself in the process.
Will Smith will return in ‘I AM LEGEND 2’. pic.twitter.com/EY6rVEkTt2
— Cinema Brainiac 🍿 (@CinemaBrainiac) December 2, 2023
However, Robert lived on the alternate version of the film’s DVD, which the second film would pick up.
“You have to be a real I Am Legend buff to know this, but in the first theatrical version, my character dies, but on the DVD, there was an alternate version of the ending where my character lived,” Smith explained via Screen Daily. “We are going with the mythology of the DVD version. I can’t tell you anything more, but Michael B. Jordan is in.”
So far, there are no words yet on what role Jordan will play in the second movie.
The Alternate Ending of I Am Legend
Warning: Major spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.
Compared to the movie’s theatrical version, its DVD’s alternate ending is truer than the original novel and gives a deeper understanding of the infected. It reveals that these monstrous creatures are very much aware of themselves, intelligent, and even have feelings. With these traits, Robert can’t help but question his own morality.
I Am Legend’s alternate ending is the main reason I’ve always wanted to write a book where depending on which copy you own the ending is completely different. The fact that to this day folks still don’t know that movie had two endings.
— Quintessa Knight (@quietblkgrl) December 2, 2023
Here, Robert survives after making peace with the Alpha Male, resulting in giving up his quest to find a cure. In the end, he escapes with Anna and Ethan to see the other survivors outside New York City, giving the protagonist a chance to return to I Am Legend 2.
What Might Happen in I Am Legend 2?
In an interview with Deadline, Goldsman revealed that I Am Legend 2 would start a few decades after the first movie, tracing back to Richard Matheson’s book, on which the film was based. In the novel, the author delves into the story where humanity’s time on the planet has ended as a different species starts to dominate the earth.
“We trace back to the original Matheson book and the alternate ending as opposed to the released ending in the original film,” he said. “What [original author Richard] Matheson was talking about was that man’s time on the planet as the dominant species had ended. That’s a really interesting thing we’re going to get to explore. There will be a little more fidelity to the original text.”
Francis Lawrence also returns to direct I Am Legend 2, while Alice Braga has expressed interest in returning to the second movie to reprise her role as Anna and reunite with Will Smith.
This alternate ending to I Am Legend might have been more popular with the book fans 📚 pic.twitter.com/geIvLvdIOc
— TV Guide (@TVGuide) November 28, 2023
“I hope [I get to return]! Because it was such a joy to work with them. And also, it’s interesting because I was 23 when I did the film,” she said, per Collider. “It’s been such a long time ago, and I did so much work afterward. I think I grew as an actress, as a woman, and as everything, so it would be nice to revisit that material, that team, to reunite with Akiva, who is a screenwriter that I deeply admire.”
I Am Legend 2 has no release date yet. Following this alternate ending and seeing Will Smith return as Robert Neville in the sequel, there are high hopes surrounding the much-awaited film. Many hope it can deliver and even match or surpass the original movie’s success. Hopefully, this one won’t look like a forced fan service.
