Orphan: First Kill may have only released last August, but director William Brent Bell has confirmed that a third film in the Orphan franchise is already in development.
In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, he said "We're developing a third one now. The franchise's rulebook has been opened up to where anything is possible. And knowing where we are in the process already, I'm extremely excited about the twists and turns that we have in store."
Bell was also asked about the risky decision to cast 23-year-old Isabelle Fuhrman as the nine-year-old Esther in Orphan: First Kill. He told the outlet:
"I have a certain blind optimism going into my creative ideas if I'm excited about one. When I first read that script, one of my two things was, "Is it going to have a great twist? And if it does, how do you recast that Isabelle Fuhrman?" And it did have that great twist, so I went and I met with Isabelle immediately. She really wanted to play the part, and it wasn't me trying to talk her into doing something bizarre. She still looks very much like she did as a child, only bigger, whereas I would've looked totally different if you compared me at 12 and 24. So I was like, "Wow, this could really work."
Orphan: First Kill launched directly onto Paramount+ in August 2022 and was met with a mixed reception from critics. It acted as a prequel to the 2009 film Orphan and saw Ester travel to America to impersonate the daughter of a wealthy family after escaping a psychiatric facility.
Are you excited for a third Orphan film?