It’s been quite some time since we’ve mentioned anything on the DONNIE DARKO sequel S, DARKO. Within that span, I guess director Chris Fisher has been busy piecing his film together and possibly fending off jabs from DONNIE’s creator, Richard Kelly. Well, maybe that last part is just an extreme speculation on my part. Anyways, one of S. DARKO’s stars, Jackson Rathbone, has come forth with some interesting info on the project as well as his role.
“I play this crazy character and it has to be one of the best character developments I’ve seen,” he said. “I just jumped at the chance to play it. Chris Fisher is an amazing director. [Makeup artist] Christel Edwards did this amazing prosthetic effect on me, it was so much fun. It was a month in Utah and we just had a blast [shooting] up there.”
So he wears some kind of prosthetic. Great. But… “How could they be making a sequel to DONNIE DARKO without Richard Kelly at the helm?” That was the initial response that a great deal of the original’s fans had when it was announced that Donnie’s lil sis would be carrying on the story, set seven years later. This kind of concern does seem understandable. Hell, even I at first felt that way. Here’s what Rathbone had to say on the issue:
“Look at the original DONNIE DARKO. When it was first released, did anybody like it? No, it was a year later. Through people talking, people got it. We’re in an opposite boat, because people loved the first one after a while. Maybe they’ll warm up to this, too. Or, they’ll hate the idea of it, but once they see it, I think they’re going to turn around. It takes the idea of the [first] film and it goes beyond, answering and delving into more questions than DONNIE DARKO did. A lot of people are pissed that Richard Kelly is not involved, but he did sell the idea. He did give the license to do it. So it’s not like he’s opposed to it.”
Hmm, I wonder if that’s completely true. If so, then why didn’t Kelly come right out and say it? Who knows? And if S. DARKO winds up being a good flick, then who cares? At least they did get the original Samantha Darko, Daveigh Chase, to reprise her role for the sequel whose plot goes like this: The story picks up seven years after the first film with little sister Samantha Darko and her best friend Corey (Briana Evigan, below) who are now 18 and on a road trip to Los Angeles when they are plagued by bizarre visions.