Is ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ Sequel Happening? Tim Burton Reveals the Truth

Tim Burton’s hit Halloween-holiday classic celebrated its 30th anniversary, and the filmmaker explained why the movie is ‘very important’ to him. 

Sequels, prequels and reboots have become Hollywood’s biggest moviemaking move; some projects are successful, and some flop. Fans have been pining for a Nightmare Before Christmas sequel, and after the film celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, viewers are asking whether they could eventually see a Nightmare Before Christmas 2 hit the big screen. 

Will There Be a ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ Sequel? 

Tim Burton — the creator of the original 1993 film — clarified that he currently has no plans to continue Jack Skellington’s story during a 2023 interview with PEOPLE. 

“To me, the movie is very important,” Tim explained. “I’ve done sequels, I’ve done other things, I’ve done reboots, I’ve done all that s**t, right? I don’t want that to happen to this. It’s nice that people are maybe interested [in another one], but I’m not.” 

Fans weren’t convinced, however, because the filmmaker jumped on board to direct the Beetlejuice sequel, Beetlejuice 2. Nevertheless, as the brains behind Halloween Town, Tim has not given the sequel the green light. Not only that, but director Henry Selick acknowledged Tim’s perspective during an interview with the same outlet in October 2023. 

“I think Tim in particular feels like, why mess with that?” Henry noted. “He certainly doesn’t need to make more money from a sequel. He has had so many other successes, and so far, nobody’s come up with a great idea for a sequel. And I still think that Tim gets to decide. I don’t think there’s any idea that would convince him.” 

The Walt Disney Company released a sequel to the film in the form of a book, which is titled Long Live the Pumpkin Queen, in 2021. 

Is There a ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ Prequel? 

During Henry’s PEOPLE interview, the Coraline director noted that since a sequel might not be possible, a prequel could “be more interesting” to create. 

“There might be a more interesting story there about how Jack became the King of Halloween Town,” Henry said. Actor Chris Sarandon — who voiced the character of Jack — is “absolutely” on board to do either a prequel or a sequel. “To quote Henry, ‘F**k yeah,’ ” Chris said. “If there were a sequel, I’d be there in a minute.”

Are They Making a Live-Action ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’? 

In early 2023, rumors surfaced online that Disney had greenlit a live-action Nightmare Before Christmas starring Pirates of the Caribbean star Johnny Depp. However, the rumors turned out to be baseless, and the studio has not confirmed whether a live-action was even considered.