If Summit Entertainment is keen on appointing another female director to replace the departed Catherine Hardwicke from Twilight sequel New Moon, they’ve got one fewer lady to choose from after Betty Thomas today committed to directing Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Squeakuel.
That, of course, is the sequel to Alvin And The Chipmunks, the CGI/live-action hybrid that, to pretty much everyone’s surprise, was one of the biggest films of last year, pulling in $360 million worldwide.
Original director Tim Hill has moved onto pastures new, though, so Thomas has stepped into the fray. A fine comedy director, she has the likes of Private Parts, The Brady Bunch Movie and the under-rated I Spy under her belt. Her last film, though, was the misfire, John Tucker Must Die, so she needs a hit – and the appallingly-named Alvin sequel should do the trick.
Although plot details are under wraps – because eight year-olds everywhere are obviously going to scour the net looking for details on the storyline of Alvin And The Chipmunks 2 – the film will see the return of Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney’s vocal cords as the CG Alvin, Simon and Theodore respectively.
It’s not yet known if Jason Lee will be back as their human buddy Dave, but we do know that the sequel – sorry, squeakuel (really? C’mon!) – will see the introduction of female chipmunks, the Chipettes. Which raises the icky prospect that **Alvin 2 **may well just feature 90 minutes of squeaky chipmunk porn.
Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and Janice Karman are producing the Fox 2000/Regency movie, with the writers yet to be finalised.