I see no way in hell Paramount can return to the land of Forrest Gump, but the word out of Cinema Blend is that is entirely what they are trying to do as an apparent tiff with “Gump” author Winston Groom has ended and a five year old script by original screenwriter Eric Roth is being rewritten.
The second film would be adapted from Groom’s second Gump novel, “Gump & Co.” which apparently spans the last decade of Forrest Gump’s life which includes the 1995 Oscars in which Forrest Gump won six Oscars, he also becomes involved in Iran-Contra, insider trading, the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and Desert Storm. With Jenny dead and serving as Gump’s “angel” and Gump a father to little Forrest the story offers what sounds like a similar tone and I don’t see what they would do that would be so different that would warrant a second film.
Cinema Blend refers to the their source as “absolutely reliable” which is no surprise, why wouldn’t Paramount take a look at a sequel that made $329+ million at the box back in 1994? The bigger question is would be Tom Hanks return to the sequel? I have to assume that is a negative unless the script really offers something truly different. Perhaps Gump could pull a Bond and go into space and use lasers! Now that would be worth seeing.
The Cinema Blend article ends saying that word is they want this in theaters within the next couple of years. I can’t see it happening and I think this is the last we will hear of this rumor, but I was bored and thought I would report.
