Back in 2011, a below-the-radar film by the name of ATTACK THE BLOCK came along and blew my mind. Directed and written by Joe Cornish, the film stars a young John Boyega as Moses, the shot-caller for a teenage gang based out of South London. After a horde of "big alien gorilla wolf motherfuckers" descend, it's up to Moses, his crew, and a fearless woman named Sam (played by Doctor Who's Jodie Whitaker) to defend their block from an oncoming invasion. Straight up, ever since this movie came out, I've been wanting a sequel. Now, while no such plans are in place for Moses and his gang to take the fight London-wide just yet, Cornish and Boyega have recently floated the idea of getting back together for another go.
Recently while appearing on the Script Apart podcast (courtesy of Empire), Cornish was asked if a sequel to his sci-fi action comedy is in the mix, even though it's been more than a decade since we've checked in with Moses and his defenders of the block.
“We’ve got ideas," Cornish revealed on Script Apart. "I met with John a couple of months ago to talk about it. We’ve always had ideas since after the first one, but obviously we’ve both been busy doing different things. In a weird way, kinda, the longer you leave it the more interesting it is. So that’s what I’ll say.”
Oh Cornish, don't tease. Some would say that now is the perfect time to put a sequel to ATTACK THE BLOCK in motion, given the original's powerful message about systemic racism, police brutality, and humankind's propensity to fear those who they do not understand. I could see a sequel to ATTACK THE BLOCK really digging its heels into the ongoing strife that runs deep within the veins of society, all while using the aliens as a razor-sharp toothed metaphor for the problems that haunt and devour the less fortunate.
For the moment, we'll have to wait and see if anything comes from Cornish and Boyega's talks. After all, Boyega's Hollywood dance card is quite full after his latest bow as Finn for Disney and LucaFilm's Star Wars Universe, and Cornish's TV movie SNOW CRASH is still in the midst of readying itself for an HBO debut down the road.
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