Happy Death Day 2U
Happy Death Day 2U is a 2019 American science fiction slasher film written and directed by Christopher Landon. It stars Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Phi Vu, Suraj Sharma, Sarah Yarkin, Rachel Matthews, Ruby Modine, and Steve Zissis. The film again follows Tree Gelbman, who is accidentally transported to another dimension, where she must relive a different version of the same day repeatedly as she tries to return home, while a new killer is on the loose. The film is a sequel to 2017's Happy Death Day, with Jason Blum again serving as a producer through his Blumhouse Productions company.
The film was released in the United States on February 13, 2019, by Universal Pictures. It received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Rothe's performance, as well as the film's shift to a more sci-fi tone, although some noted it as derivative of the first film. It grossed $64million worldwide against a $9million budget.
Plot
College student Ryan wakes up in his car on Tuesday, September 19. Returning to his dorm room, he walks in on his roommate Carter and Carter’s girlfriend, Tree. He resumes work on an experimental quantum reactor with fellow students Samar and Dre. After Bronson, the school dean, shuts down the project for triggering several power outages, Ryan is murdered by someone dressed as Babyface and wakes up again on Tuesday the 19th. Tree explains her experience reliving Monday the 18th, and she and Carter agree to help Ryan. They learn the reactor was responsible for creating the loop. The new Babyface tracks Ryan down, but Tree unmasks him to reveal another Ryan. The second Ryan warns that the original must die for the loop to close. Terrified, Ryan activates the reactor, releasing a powerful energy pulse that knocks everyone unconscious.Tree wakes up in Carter's room on Monday the 18th, and relives her original time loop, but she soon realizes things are different after finding out that Carter is now dating a nicer Danielle. Ryan theorizes that the reactor caused Tree to drift into another dimension. When Tree learns her mother is still alive in this new reality, she decides to stay.
That night, Tree goes to the hospital to intercept serial killer John Tombs before he escapes but is confronted by a police officer. Babyface kills the officer, and Tree runs into Lori at the elevator, realizing she isn't the killer in this reality. Lori tells Tree that Babyface cannot be Tombs because she just took him in for surgery. Babyface stabs Lori, then chases Tree to the roof, where she accidentally falls to her death. She wakes at the beginning of her loop and demands that Ryan and his team help her escape it, requiring they test dozens of algorithms. At Carter's suggestion, Tree serves as the group's recorder, killing herself at the end of each day so they can start again. Eventually, her injuries catch up with her, and she faints. Waking up in the hospital, Tree steals a gun to go after Tombs, only to find Lori already dead. Tombs, disguised as Babyface, attacks, and Tree shoots him dead. However, a second Babyface appears, forcing Tree to kill herself and Babyface.
The group finally discovers the correct algorithm, but a technical issue forces a delay. Faced with a choice of which reality she wants to be in when both time loops close, Tree decides to remain in the current dimension. Carter urges Tree to consider the consequences of living a life that is not truly hers, and states that her experience with grief helped shape the person she is now. Tree hides from Babyface in a hotel. That evening, the news reports that Carter was murdered trying to save Lori at the hospital. Tree kills herself and deactivates the reactor so she can save Carter and Lori. The loop restarts and Tree decides to return to her own reality. She advises Lori to end her affair with her professor Dr. Butler, discovers that Danielle is cheating on Carter and has a final conversation with her mother.
Bronson confiscates the reactor before the group can activate it. Believing she is too weak to survive another loop, Tree insists they retrieve the device. The group enlists Danielle to distract Bronson while they recover the reactor. As Ryan readies the device, Tree goes to the hospital to rescue Lori from Tombs, but is trapped by the second Babyface—revealed to be Dr. Butler trying to bury the evidence of his affair with Lori. Dr. Butler's wife Stephanie appears and shoots Lori, revealing she is in league with her husband, but he betrays and shoots her as well. Tree outsmarts Butler and kills him. Lori survives, and Tree and Carter kiss as the reactor activates, sending Tree back to her original dimension on Tuesday the 19th.
Later, Tree, Carter, Ryan, Samar, and Dre are escorted by agents to a DARPA laboratory, where the reactor has been moved for further experimentation. When the agents say they need a test subject in order to see how the machine works, Tree says she knows the perfect test subject. In her bedroom, Danielle wakes up, screaming in horror.
Cast
Production
Development
Ahead of the first film's release, director Christopher Landon talked about the possibility of a sequel, focusing on why Tree went into the time loop stating "The whole idea for my sequel is actually already in this movie".Actress Jessica Rothe in an interview in 2018 stated that while most horror sequels retread the original, Landon's pitch instead "elevates the movie from being a horror movie into a Back to the Future type of genre film where the sequel joins us right from where we left off, it explains a lot of things in the first one that didn't get explained, and it elevates everything."
The sequel was officially announced with filming scheduled to begin on May 10, 2018.
Casting
Most of the original actors returned, including Rothe, Modine, Broussard, and Matthews. In addition, Suraj Sharma and Sarah Yarkin were cast.Filming
Principal photography on the film began on May 14, 2018, in New Orleans, Louisiana. In November 2018, Ben Baudhuin was confirmed to be the film's editor.Music
On February 15, 2019, Back Lot Music released the original motion picture soundtrack for the film, with music produced by Bear McCreary. The soundtrack did not feature Lizzo's cover of "Stayin' Alive".On January 2, 2019, Back Lot Music released a cover of "Stayin' Alive" performed by Lizzo as a stand-alone promotional single for the movie. The song plays throughout the first set of end credits before the post-credit scene.
Release
Happy Death Day 2U was released on February 13, 2019. It was originally scheduled to be released one day later, on Valentine's Day. However, the film was rescheduled after a request from a relative of a victim of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, which happened exactly one year prior.Home media
The film was released digitally on April 30, 2019, and on Blu-ray and DVD on May 14.Reception
Box office
Happy Death Day 2U grossed $28.1million in the United States and Canada, and $36.5million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $64.5million, against a production budget of $9million.In the United States and Canada, Happy Death Day 2U was released alongside Isn't It Romantic, and was projected to gross $17–20million from 3,207 theaters in its opening weekend. Opening without Tuesday night previews, the film made $992,000 on its first day, Wednesday, and $2.7million on Valentine's Day, Thursday, for a two-day total of $3.7million. It went on to debut to $9.8million over the weekend, finishing $3.5million below expectations and fifth at the box office. The film dropped 48% in its second weekend, making $5million and finishing seventh.
Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 71% based on 200 reviews, with an average rating of 6.03/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "A funnier follow-up with a sci-fi bent, Happy Death Day 2U isn't as fiendishly fresh as its predecessor, but fans of the original may still find this a sequel worth celebrating." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, the same score as the first film, while those at PostTrak gave it an average 2.5 out of 5 stars.Kimber Myers, writing for the Los Angeles Times, delivered a positive review, saying: "Happy Death Day 2U can't quite replicate the feelings of joy and discovery of the original, but Landon deserves credit for varying the tune, while still playing the hits that will please the fans of its predecessor." Meg Downey, critic for IGN, praised the film, grading it an 8.5/10 and writing, "Happy Death Day 2U deserves a healthy amount of praise for pushing its pedal to the metal all the way through. The level of risk-taking is refreshing, even when it's not completely successful at every single turn."