Matthew Vaughn Teases 'Kick-Ass' Prequel and Sequel

First of all, let’s not take this news too seriously — Matthew Vaughn has been known to set his sights on projects only to abandon them when he loses interest, and he’s also never directed a sequel to one of his own films before. That may change soon, as Vaughn is currently writing a Kingsman sequel, which he’d also like to direct. And since he’s got sequels on the brain, he’s also revealed some other potential plans. The keyword here being “potential.”

Vaughn’s risky big screen adaptation of Mark Millar’s Kick-Ass not only improved on the source material, but it proved to be a surprising hit, especially for a rated-R comic book movie. The sequel, directed by Jeff Wadlow, was a disappointment not just to fans, but commercially and critically, as well. Vaughn’s Kick-Ass was subversive and fun, while Wadlow’s Kick-Ass 2 was just plain nasty.

Vaughn himself is aware of this, which is why he says he’s not “happily done” with the franchise, and he’d like to win back the fans. How does he plan on doing that? In an interview with Yahoo! UK, he explains:

We’re working on an idea for a prequel of how did Hit Girl and Big Daddy become Hit Girl and Big Daddy. If we make that, hopefully that will be the sorbet for the people that didn’t like Kick-Ass 2, and then we can go off and make Kick-Ass 3. But I think we’ve got to do this prequel just to regain the love that we had with Kick-Ass.

Hit Girl and Big Daddy were the biggest attraction and the best part of the first Kick-Ass film, but Chloe Grace Moretz hasn’t exactly gotten any younger since then (although she can still pass for high school age). Vaughn and Millar would have to recast the role with a suitable replacement, but it’s safe to assume Nicolas Cage would definitely return.

There is some backstory to Hit Girl and Big Daddy that wasn’t entirely explored in the first Kick-Ass, and Millar most likely has some story notes for the duo that never made it to the page. But was the disappointment of Kick-Ass 2 enough to completely diminish fan interest in further installments? That film left a bad taste in our mouths that we might not ever be able to wash out.

Again, you might not want to take Vaughn’s potential plans too seriously — with Kingsman 2 on the way, he’s pretty tied up for the time being.