Happy Death Day 3 may finally be closer to happening than it has ever been. Franchise star Jessica Rothe has revealed that she and director Chris Landon have actually broken the story for the long-awaited third movie, and they’re now waiting for Universal Pictures and Blumhouse to give the project the green light.
Speaking with Deadline, Rothe provided the most substantial update yet on Happy Death Day 3, which Landon has previously said would be titled Happy Death Day to Us. While the movie has been discussed for years, Rothe’s latest comments indicate that the creative work isn’t what’s holding the sequel back anymore.
“So, Chris Landon and I have actually broken the whole story, which was really fun,” Rothe reveals. “We went to an undisclosed location—a Le Pain Quotidien in between our houses—and sat there for hours and broke the third movie. And now, we’re just waiting for Universal and Blumhouse to [give us] just a little money. This is a Deadline exclusive. You heard it here first.”
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That’s an encouraging update for fans who have been waiting since Happy Death Day 2U hit theaters in 2019.
What is Happy Death Day 3 about?
We don’t know the plot of Happy Death Day 3 yet, but Landon has been clear for years that he wants to finish Tree Gelbman’s story.
In Happy Death Day, Tree wakes up on her birthday in the bed of a stranger and soon finds herself murdered by a masked killer. Rather than staying dead, she wakes up and finds herself trapped in a time loop, forced to relive the day of her murder over and over again until she can figure out who is trying to kill her.
Happy Death Day 2U continued the story as Tree found herself caught in another deadly situation, this time with the rules of the time loop having changed.
Landon previously revealed that Happy Death Day 3 is a movie he really wants to make. At one point, there was even talk of turning the third installment into a three-part Peacock streaming event, but that didn’t pan out.
Jessica Rothe is determined to return as Tree
Rothe has consistently made it clear that she wants to return as Tree, even if the wait stretches on for years. Our friends at Bloody Disgusting note that earlier this year, she said that she and Landon were committed to doing the work necessary to get the project into shape.
“We are dedicated to do the legwork on our end, in terms of developing it and getting it to where it needs to be so that it becomes a no-brainer for the studio. Chris feels really strongly, and I agree, he’s come up with an incredible, incredible end of the trilogy and a way to kind of perfectly cap the movies.”
That work now appears to have paid off, at least creatively. Rothe and Landon have broken the story, leaving Universal and Blumhouse to decide whether they’re ready to finance the movie.
Rothe previously gave fans another memorable update when she said that whether Happy Death Day 3 happens next year or when she’s 65, she’ll be there to finish Tree’s story.
Jessica Rothe’s River is also making news
There’s another reason Rothe’s name is turning up in horror news this week. She stars alongside Jane Levy and Max Mattern in Joshua Giuliano’s River, a survival slasher that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. River has just been acquired by Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Atomic Monster in a deal reportedly worth more than $10 million, making it one of TIFF 2026’s biggest sales. That acquisition is particularly notable here because it puts Rothe in a new horror movie that Universal and Blumhouse have now made a significant investment in.
Read Chris Bumbray’s River review for his take on the movie.
For Happy Death Day fans, though, the important news is that Rothe and Landon have done their part. The story for Happy Death Day 3 exists. Now they’re waiting for Universal and Blumhouse to decide if it’s finally time to let Tree Gelbman have one last deadly day. Do you want to see this movie happen? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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