I sat in a theater where the final credits of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark still hummed and the audience was already trading sequel theories. You felt the energy: nostalgia mixed with appetite for more—then silence as plans stalled. Months later, the sequel isn’t stalled by creativity but by paperwork that refuses to agree on who owns what.
At a crowded festival bar, fans asked if the series would continue
I told them then what I’ll tell you now: André Øvredal didn’t abandon the project. He has a script that’s being polished and a passion that hasn’t cooled. The obstacle isn’t story or talent; it’s corporate entropy—two companies that shepherded the first film, CBS Films and eOne, have dissolved, and the rights spread out among new guardians who must decide who can move forward.
Is there going to be a Scary Stories 2?
Short answer: maybe. Øvredal has said the script is ready and being revised, and Guillermo del Toro’s attachment gives the property cultural momentum. But “maybe” is tethered to legal agreement. Until the companies that inherited rights sign off, no greenlight will land on a production schedule.
Outside a trade desk, I watched headlines flip from excitement to legal blur
Deadline and /Film covered the sequel announcement in 2020, and IGN reported script updates in 2023. Press cycles gave the project visibility, but press doesn’t fix ownership splits. When CBS Films and eOne folded, their assets migrated to new corporate entities. Those entities must negotiate or litigate over who can claim the franchise—and that turns creative urgency into a slow consult of legal departments.
Why is the Scary Stories sequel delayed?
Because the IP sits in what Øvredal calls “copyright ownership hell.” Contracts that once pointed to two active producers now point to companies that have been absorbed or restructured. The conversations exist—he hears from them every few months—but production requires a single clear owner to sign checks, allocate marketing, and assign distribution, and that clarity hasn’t landed yet.
At my desk I checked box office and market interest to measure the stakes
The original film earned healthy returns and cultural traction: roughly $104 million USD (€97M) worldwide, enough to justify a sequel on paper. On the creative side, the film had heavyweight names attached—producer Guillermo del Toro, screenwriters Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman, and source material by Alvin Schwartz with Stephen Gammell’s iconic illustrations—so the appetite from audiences and talent is real. The missing ingredient is legal consent from parties who now report to different corporate mothers.
Who owns the rights to the Scary Stories movie?
There isn’t a single, public answer right now. The original producers were CBS Films and eOne; both have since been absorbed into larger entities. That has distributed the rights across successors and distributors. Øvredal says conversations happen every couple of months and that there is movement—slow, legal movement. Until those successors agree, the IP is effectively in limbo.
In a producer briefing, I heard practical options that could break the stalemate
If you’re watching as an investor or fan, the routes are predictable: one successor buys the others out, partners form a joint-venture, or a studio sues to declare a single owner. Each path involves legal expense and a timetable that can stretch months or years. The easiest path for creatives is to wait for a clear title; the more aggressive path is to negotiate new terms with whoever holds distribution rights now.
Øvredal’s new film Passenger opens May 22, and his continued visible activity helps keep pressure on decision-makers. You don’t need a reminder that Guillermo del Toro’s name acts as both credibility and leverage; his “story by” credit and vocal support make the property more attractive to potential stakeholders.
For fans, the emotional risk is that nostalgia will fade while the legal gears grind. The film sits in a legal spiderweb and the option to move forward feels trapped in a locked attic—creative energy on the other side, no clear key in sight.
If big studios or platforms—think Netflix, Lionsgate, or Amazon Studios—decide to claim the IP, they’ll also bring budgets, distribution plans, and marketing muscle. But which company will bet on a sequel that needs both creative fidelity and legal clarity, and who will be willing to pay what it takes to make the decision for everyone else?
Who will finally step up and sign the paperwork so the sequel can stop being an idea and start being a movie?