Early forecasts have Sam Raimi's Oz the Great and Powerful possibly surpassing $100M this weekend, which is...well, it's pretty darn great and powerful. Disney knew they might have a whopper of a hit on their hands, which is why they've already begun planning the sequel, bringing Mitchell Kapner back to pen the script. The big question, other than what the story might entail, is who else might be returning? It doesn't sound like Raimi has any plans on making a return trip to the Emerald City. Here's what he told Bleeding Cool....
Raimi: "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 was attracted to this story but I don’t think the second one would have the thing I would need to get me interested."
If Kapner was really hired months ago to start on the screenplay, then Disney has probably spoken to Raimi at least once about where the next film could go. So if he's telling us now that he has no interest, then it's time to start thinking about the next guy. I just hope it won't be Tim Burton. Oz the Great and Powerful is out now. Check out my review here.
