Stranger Things Star's Reboot Of Cult Classic '90s Horror Comedy Gets Exciting Script Update While Original Star's Return Is "TBD"

An impending comedy horror movie reboot from a Stranger Things star has gotten an update about its script and a potential returning cast member. Stranger Things is a widely popular Netflix series that follows multiple generations of Hawkins, Indiana residents facing supernatural foes, though it particularly focuses on the pre-teens and teenagers. The show draws influences from many horror, fantasy, and science fiction properties from throughout the 1980s, particularly Dungeons & Dragons as well as the works of Stephen King and Steven Spielberg.

Although the Netflix series is still ongoing, during its long hiatuses, many members of the Stranger Things cast have starred in horror or horror-adjacent movies. This includes David Harbour (Jim Hopper) playing Santa in Violent Night, Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield) starring in the Netflix summer camp slasher Fear Street Part Two: 1978, Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler) taking a role in the Henry James adaptation The Turning, and Joe Keery (Steve Harrington) playing a killer rideshare driver in Spree. The cast's horror movie roster is continuing to grow with the upcoming reboot of a 1990s cult classic.

Finn Wolfhard Shares An Update On The Idle Hands Reboot

He Is Co-Writing The Movie With Billy Bryk

Devon Sawa gasping while holding his evil hand in Idle Hands

In November 2024, it was announced that Finn Wolfhard would return once again to the horror genre by co-writing a remake of 1999's Idle Hands with Billy Bryk, with whom there is the potential for him to co-direct. The original movie followed a lazy teenager (future Final Destination star Devon Sawa) having his hand possessed by a murderous demonic entity. The star-studded Idle Hands cast also included Seth Green, Jessica Alba, Vivica A. Fox, Sean Whalen, and Fred Willard.

Idle Hands was a flop, grossing $4.2 million against its $25 million budget, but it later became a cult classic.

While speaking with ComicBook about their new slasher comedy Hell of a Summer, which they co-directed, co-wrote, and in which they co-star, Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk discussed how Idle Hands is shaping up and whether Sawa might return. Wolfhard said that both the duo directing and Devon Sawa returning are "TBD," but Bryk added that they are "excited about the script," which feels like a "cool, full circle moment" because the original Idle Hands was one of their influences on Hell of a Summer, which also stars Abby Quinn, Fred Hechinger, and D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai. Read their full quotes below:

Finn Wolfhard: TBD. TBD on [us directing and bringing back Devon Sawa], I would say.
Billy Bryk: We’re just super excited about the script, and the story, and the idea. I mean, Sawa is a legend. That performance in that first movie is so incredible…that movie was really a major influence on [Hell of a Summer] in a lot of ways, so it feels like a cool, full circle moment that we’re kind of developing the reimagining of Idle Hands.

What This Means For Idle Hands

Devon Sawa's Return Could Still Happen

Hell of a Summer Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk holding flashlights — Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk holding flashlights in Hell of a Summer

Given the way that Bryk and Wolfhard are talking, it seems that the horror movie is still far too early in its development for any concrete decisions to have been made. However, should the project continue to move forward, it seems entirely possible that Sawa could return. He has continued to take horror roles since the 1990s, most recently when he joined the Heart Eyes cast and played multiple characters in the Chucky series. Additionally, in 2020, he told ComicBook that "if there was one film that I want to do a sequel to that would be [Idle Hands.]"

Source: ComicBook