‘Jennifer’s Body 2’ gets a promising new update from Diablo Cody
Jennifer Check’s high school problems included friendship drama and an appetite for teenage boys. Megan Fox played Jennifer in ‘Jennifer’s Body,’ with Amanda Seyfried starring as her best friend, Anita “Needy” Lesnicki. Their story began with a night out that ended in a botched satanic sacrifice. Now, screenwriter Diablo Cody is preparing another chapter for the character whose transformation drove the 2009 horror comedy.
Speaking on the ‘Petticoat Revolution’ podcast, Cody discussed her plans to revisit Jennifer. “And one fun thing—I can’t talk about it too much—but you know we’re doing a sequel to this movie, like imminently, and I felt like in the new movie, I was able to explore even more about why Jennifer is sympathetic and what she’s been through. And there is absolutely, to me, a loneliness and a poignancy to that character that people don’t always recognize.” Her remarks offer a closer look at the character in the upcoming sequel.
Cody also explained how she views Jennifer before and after the events that turn her into a killer. “Jennifer is a sympathetic character for me, before and after the transformation,” she said. “I mean, she is very isolated, she’s very lonely, she’s very insecure.” She pointed to Fox’s performance as a reason those qualities remain part of the character alongside her power.
“Everybody remembers Jennifer when she’s like, ‘I am a god,’ or when she’s at her most radiant and at her most powerful. But people forget about these moments in the movie where she’s like a shell of herself, she’s just exsanguinated almost. And to me, Megan played both of those sides of Jennifer so well.” Those moments are central to Cody’s explanation of what she wants to examine further.
The sequel is in development at 20th Century Studios. Fox and Seyfried have both expressed interest in returning, though their involvement remains unconfirmed in the supplied reports. Original director Karyn Kusama has also discussed knowing elements of Cody’s idea. Her comments did not confirm that she would direct the follow-up.
The original developed a cult following in the years after its release, a turnaround Cody discussed with TheWrap in February 2024. “I mean, the movie is everything to me,” she said. “And it was to me at the time as well, but it just was not understood and it was not embraced.” Her latest comments bring the conversation back to Jennifer herself, whose loneliness and vulnerability Cody wants audiences to consider alongside the bloodshed.
