Dark Napoleon Dynamite Sequel In The Works?
Jon Heder said he would like to make a Napoleon Dynamite 2 but it would be a darker film than the original.
Would Jon Heder be interested in making Napoleon Dynamite 2? Heck yes, he would! “[I] personally would love to do more Napoleon stuff,” he said at Pittsburgh’s Steel City Con. But according to ComicBook.com, if he had it his way, the sequel would be a more somber story than the original.
“We wouldn’t do, ‘It’s senior year, and it’s a bunch of 40-year-olds pretending they’re still in high school,'” he said. “If it was coming from me — I don’t know how much they’re going to listen to me — but prepare yourselves, it’s gonna be dark.”
Nearly 20 years after Napoleon Dynamite hit theaters, it is refreshing to see that its lead actor still has love for the story. Jon Heder’s ideas for Napoleon Dynamite 2 even keep well in line with the personalities and characters in the original. His idea for the plot for a sequel would include Napoleon being beaten down by daily life, working for a living while “paying for maybe one or two alimonies, child support for one of them.”
That may sound grim for our snow boot-wearing dance icon, but according to Jon Heder, this is actually a perfect place to start. Napoleon Dynamite 2 would show Napoleon pulling himself out of that dark place. “He’s got to win back Deb, maybe,” he muses, “and he’s got to save Uncle Rico from prison, and Kip is actually roided-out from cage fighting. So Napoleon and Kip are getting there and Kip is tearing people up. I don’t know, there’s something there.”
According to Jon Heder, this is all speculation, however, and there is not actually a Napoleon Dynamite 2 in the works at the moment, in part because of fear that it would ruin fans’ love of the original. Plus, other cult comedies that have come back after decades to make a sequel haven’t done so well – just look at Dumb and Dumber To.
It may be impossible to recapture that first Napoleon film’s odd, awkward magic, but Jon Heder is definitely open to trying. Even if its oddball characters and storyline didn’t appeal to everyone, he earned an audience of very devoted fans. The original film put him on the map and kickstarted his acting career, so Napoleon Dynamite 2 would be a great way for him to thank those fans for giving him that chance, and for staying loyal to his quirky film all this time.
Jon Heder cites Disney’s acquisition of Fox’s properties as a good sign that a sequel could happen someday. “We know how Disney feels about cashing in on everything that’s ever been made,” he said, implying that, if there is a way to continue to make money off of a film or series from the past, Disney will try it. They’ve done so with other beloved shows and movies.
It is unclear whether fellow actors from the film would be as interested in the project as he is, although they have all shown up in the past to create things like the short-lived Napoleon Dynamite animated series. Efren Ramirez, who played Pedro (of “Vote for Pedro” fame), even reunited with Jon Heder on a commercial for Burger King’s new cheesy tater tots in 2020, proving that there is still something there.
Since he starred in Napoleon Dynamite, Jon Heder has appeared in films like Just Like Heaven, The Benchwarmers, Blades of Glory, and When in Rome. He has also done voiceover work for animated movies and television series.
He has been married to his wife, Kirsten Bales, since 2022, and they have four children together. I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious between them!
Jon Heder’s life sounds pretty sweet at the moment, but maybe one day we’ll get to see him return in Napoleon Dynamite 2 as an older, wiser, but still endearingly awkward version of the Napoleon we know and love. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see, gosh!
