CityMag

InDaily

SA Life

Get CityMag in your inbox. Subscribe
August 9, 2023
Culture

Horror hit as Talk to Me sequel announced

Local filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou have announced a sequel to their first full-length feature film 'Talk to Me'.

talk to me
  • Words Sarah Herrmann
  • Photo: Supplied

Making $10 million at the box office on opening weekend less than two weeks ago, the horror is set to become a series with plans for a second film, Talk 2 Me, confirmed by A24 and Causeway Films.

“We are incredibly excited to support Danny and Michael in creating a sequel for Talk to Me, and to continue our partnership with A24,” a spokesperson for Causeway Films says.

“The disembodied hand at the centre of the film holds so much potential to find new ways to thrill cinema audiences and we can’t wait to dive in.”

The twin brothers and co-directors, originally from Pooraka, got their start with the thriller genre on their award-winning YouTube channel RackaRacka in 2013, which now boasts almost 7 million subscribers.

In a 2019 stunt, characteristic of their videos, they infamously drove to an Adelaide bottle shop in a water-filled modified car.

While they now reside in California, the CityMag 40 under 40 alumni filmed Talk to Me in Adelaide, with the support of the Adelaide Film Festival, the South Australian Film Corporation and production company Causeway Films.

After screening at Sundance earlier this year, it was distributed internationally by A24 from July 27 and now sits at $26 million worldwide.

“Hollywood is the wild west. It’s crazy – a dog-eat-dog world,” Danny Philippou previously told CityMag. “Here in Australia, you don’t have that; it’s a different culture. Everyone is at face value; you can trust it more.”

Adamant in their support of local industry, they turned away from a US production offer for the first picture knowing they wanted to make an Australian film, not an American one.

“I just want to bring everything back here, even if it’s only to do post [production],” Michael said. “It’s like, we have an awesome crew, there are so many talented people here, there is so much upside to shooting in Australia.”

Talk to Me is showing in cinemas now.

Share —