Phil Lord and Chris Miller talk 'The Lego Movie 2' Setting and Plot Details

There aren't a lot of sure things when it comes to the Oscars but one thing we can probably count on is The Lego Movie winning Best Animated Feature. Credit to Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who have proved time and time again how to make the most out of familiar properties. The question is whether they can replicate that success with The Lego Movie 2, which they've revealed to Empire will take place four years after the last film...

Miller: "Well, I don’t want to give you spoilers, but we were really interested in what happens to that boy who’s in the meta story in the first movie when he’s four years older. When he’s an adolescent how does that change his point of view?"

Although the duo proved they can handle sequels just fine with 22 Jump Street, they won't be returning to direct The Lego Movie 2. Instead they will write the screenplay while handing the directing duties to someone else, likely Chris McKay who was in charge of the first film's animation. Lord and Miller were asked about the storyline's progress as well as their reasons for stepping down as directors...

Lord: “We worried we didn’t have enough time. Luckily, [Chris] McKay and Jared [Stern] and Michelle [Morgan] all worked on the movie a bit in our absence and really cracked the beginnings of a story and got us really excited; excited enough to write it. We should be writing right now. We’ve opened a Final Draft document and titled it. I mean, that’s really the hardest part. And we’ve chosen the formatting. That is all that’s happened so far. We’ve been outlining a bunch.”

 At this point we have every reason to believe The Lego Movie's sequel will be another smash hit. Lord and Miller have yet to let us down, and hopefully the expanding Lego franchise won't get in their way creatively. There will be more than enough time for them to map things out as The Lego Movie 2 doesn't arrive until May 25th 2018. It will be preceded by a Ninjago film on September 23rd 2016 and a Lego Batman movie on May 26th 2017.

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Phil Lord and Chris Miller to Write 'The Lego Movie' Sequel

With a string of hit movies under their belts, Phil Lord and Chris Miller basically have the run of the place. They can take any job they want, and other than returning for 22 Jump Street that has usually meant backing out of sequels to pursue other projects. With Warner Bros. moving forward on a sequel to their $468M-earning The Lego Movie, there's been some question whether they'd come back to write and direct it, and now we know at least part of the answer.

Deadline reports that Warner Bros. has inked Lord and Miller to write The Lego Movie 2, but there is still no deal in place for them to direct. They've been keeping plenty busy on the TV side with a remake of The Greatest American Hero and  producing Will Forte's Last Man on Earth series, plus Sony is trying to lure them back to direct 23 Jump Street.

At least they'll have some time to make a decision. The Lego Movie 2 had been set for May 26th 2017 but it was recently replaced on that date by Lego Batman and will open at an undetermined time.

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Solo 'Lego Batman' Movie Coming in 2017; 'The Lego Movie' Sequel Likely Delayed

While there was much to love about The Lego Movie, a clear highlight was Will Arnett's hilariously arrogant and gravelly-voiced version of Batman. With so many characters ripe for a spinoff, and obviously the blessing of Warner Bros. who are seeing $$$ in their growing Lego franchise, Arnett's Batman is now set to get his own film in 2017, but it will come at the expense of another.

According to THR, the Lego Batman film will be directed by Chris McKay, the animation supervisor on The Lego Movie. But McKay was also the guy hired to direct The Lego Movie 2 which was also set for a 2017 release, and unfortunately that means the sequel is being pushed back. Arnett will be back to voice the Dark Knight, with Dark Shadows scribe Seth Grahame-Smith writing the script. Phil Lord and Chris Miller will be on hand to produce. Given the success of the Lego movies and the Lego Batman video games this could be a huge hit for Warner Bros., so no wonder they are putting it on the fast track.

The next Lego movie to hit theaters will be Ninjago, opening September 23rd 2016.

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Chris McKay will Direct 'The LEGO Movie 2'; Story Could Center on Ninjago

Warner Bros. wasted no time putting together the building blocks for a sequel to The LEGO Movie, no surprise considering the $360M worth of damage it's done at the box office. Phil Lord and Chris Miller were obviously wanted back to direct, but given their past history it seemed more likely they'd slip into producer roles, and that's exactly what has happened. Fortunately, Deadline is reporting that Chris McKay, a key figure in the last film's success, is the guy to direct The LEGO Movie 2.

In McKay's role as animation director he was largely responsible for giving the film its unique, blocky look. He comes with a wealth of experience having worked on Robot Chicken for years, as well as directing Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III. He's also currently on the shortlist to direct a Masters of the Universe film, but that may no longer be the case. Michelle Morgan and Jared Stern are penning the screenplay, and right now it's unclear where the story could go. Apparently it could be either "a straight sequel or a film that broadens the LEGO empire by focusing on the character Ninjago."

This puts Warner Bros. in an interesting position, because they only have the rights for one LEGO sequel, and they've been looking to branch out from the LEGO franchise with a solo Ninjago film. They even tapped Charlie Bean (Tron: Uprising) to direct it. If they meld that idea into a proper LEGO sequel, does that mean they'd look to spinoff a different character?

The LEGO Movie 2 is set to open May 26th 2017.

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'The LEGO Movie' Sequel Arrives May 26th 2017

Everything is definitely awesome over at Warner Bros. where The LEGO Movie has been welcomed with great reviews and a box office already over $200M. It's done so well that word on a sequel began to emerge just days after its release, and now we know when all of the pieces will come together.

The LEGO Movie 2 is three years away, hitting theaters on May 26th 2017. It's a little early for plot details but we know Jared Stern (The Internship) and Michelle Morgan (Girl Most Likely) are working on a script. What's unclear now is if co-directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller will return, or if they'll slip into a producer capacity as they did after Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

Hopefully Warner Bros. is smart enough to keep around as many people involved with the first film as possible.

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'The Lego Movie' Sequel Already in the Works

After years of successful Lego movies for the home market, the toy company took the plunge with Warner Bros. on a star-studded big screen effort with The Lego Movie. Combining many of their most popular franchises (Superman, Batman, Lord of the Rings) with a celebrity voice cast and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the film is looking like a sure-fire hit this week with early praise shooting through the roof. And rather than waiting to see how it does at the box office first, Warner Bros. has already begun putting the pieces together for a sequel.

The studio has hired Jared Stern (The Internship) and Michelle Morgan (Girl Most Likely) to begin drafting a script for a sequel, and obviously details are scarce at the moment. For instance, it's unclear whether Lord and Miller will return to direct, or if they'll slip into producer roles as they did for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2.

Warner Bros. is making good on their promise of developing one "high-end" animated film per year, dreamed up by a brain trust of filmmakers that includes Stern, Lord and Miller, Nicholas Stoller, John Requa, and Glen Ficarra. The Lego Movie is expected to open huge with analysts projecting a $40M debut. [TheWrap]

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