Hollywood has never been shy about returning to Whoville. Now, it looks like the mean green one himself is heading back.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas is getting a sequel, with Jim Carrey and Ron Howard both in talks to return, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Deadline has also reported on the project. Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment are backing the untitled live-action follow-up, reuniting the same studio and production company behind the 2000 original.
The news arrives on the heels of a strong stretch of nostalgia-driven IP at the box office. For Universal specifically, revisiting proven holiday properties carries real commercial logic. The original film grossed $265.5 million domestically and $85.1 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $350.6 million. That kind of legacy is hard to leave on the shelf.
The 2000 film was directed by Howard and written by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman, loosely based on the 1957 children's book by Dr. Seuss. Narrated by Anthony Hopkins, it stars Carrey as the Grinch, a misanthropic green creature living on Mount Crumpit who sets out to sabotage Whoville's Christmas celebration. Carrey earned a Golden Globe nomination for his performance, while the film won an Oscar for Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
Getting Carrey back has been the central question hovering over any sequel talk for years. The actor was famously vocal about how grueling the original shoot was. He described the on-set experience as working with "a ton of makeup" while barely able to breathe, calling it "an extremely excruciating process." Universal even hired a CIA operative to train him in techniques for withstanding torture just to get through production.
More recently, his tone has shifted. Carrey stated he was open to returning, but only if the character is created with motion capture CGI instead of the practical makeup and prosthetics used in the original. In an interview with ComicBook.com, he said: "Oh, gosh, you know, if we could figure out the Grinch... on the day, I do that with a ton of makeup and can hardly breathe... with motion capture and things like that, I could be free to do other things. Anything is possible in this world."
Imagine Entertainment has been laying the groundwork quietly. Jeb Brody, the president of Imagine Features, gave a recent interview in which he revealed that discussions have been ongoing about the property, telling Variety: "There are conversations around what to do with The Grinch." Howard co-founded Imagine Entertainment with producer Brian Grazer.
Advances in digital effects and modern prosthetics could make the Grinch's transformation far less grueling than it was in 2000, potentially removing Carrey's biggest barrier to returning. That practical shift may be exactly what pushed talks forward.
No release date, writer, or title has been announced. With two of the original creative pillars now reportedly in talks, the real question is how quickly the project moves from conversation to greenlight. Whoville, it seems, still has a hold on everyone.
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