Jon Watts, who broke free from the Spider-Man factory line to craft Wolfs with Hollywood heavyweights George Clooney and Brad Pitt, has officially pulled the plug on any plans for a sequel. Yes, that’s despite Wolfs being the most-watched feature Apple TV+ has ever released. Apparently, even colossal streaming numbers can’t mend a bridge that’s been torched by corporate backstabbing. Watts himself made the call, and he’s not mincing words—he simply doesn’t trust Apple anymore after their bait-and-switch distribution antics, he told Deadline who broke the story.
To recap, everything was peachy initially. Wolfs was a success, and Deadline reported Apple was so stoked that they were ready to greenlight a sequel, touting a wide theatrical release to boot. But then—cue the shady music—Apple, in their infinite wisdom, decided to ditch the big screen dream for a limited theatrical release followed by a quick shuffle to Apple TV+. This, mind you, after another Apple project, Fly Me to the Moon, bombed in extended box office play. So, Apple panicked and changed course, leaving Watts and the Wolfs crew high, dry, and reeking of betrayal.
It’s almost a tale as old as streaming itself. Remember when Doug Liman had a falling out with Amazon after they pulled the same trick with his Road House remake? Apparently, there’s a rule now: if a big studio promises you a theatrical release, you should probably carve that promise into stone before they start counting their streaming bucks.
Watts, bless him, didn’t let this corporate shadiness slide. Speaking exclusively to Deadline, Watts unloaded: “I showed Apple my final cut of Wolfs early this year. They were extremely enthusiastic about it and immediately commissioned me to start writing a sequel. But their last-minute shift from a promised wide theatrical release to a streaming release was a total surprise and made without any explanation or discussion. I wasn’t even told about it until less than a week before they announced it to the world,” Watts shared, sounding like someone who just discovered his so-called creative partner had been ghosting him.
He went on, “I was completely shocked and asked them to please not include the news that I was writing a sequel. They ignored my request and announced it in their press release anyway, seemingly to create a positive spin to their streaming pivot. And so I quietly returned the money they gave me for the sequel. I didn’t want to talk about it because I was proud of the film and didn’t want to generate any unnecessary negative press. I loved working with Brad and George (and Amy and Austin and Poorna and Zlatko) and would happily do it again. But the truth is that Apple didn’t cancel the Wolfs sequel, I did, because I no longer trusted them as a creative partner.”
Translation: Apple, in its infinite PR genius, decided to pretend everything was fine, that Watts was just raring to move forward with the sequel. Meanwhile, Watts had already taken a polite but very pointed bow and exited stage left. It’s a miracle he didn’t also take out an ad just to make it crystal clear that it was him, not Apple, who decided to stop any sequel nonsense.
Of course, Apple—when asked for comment—had nothing to say on the record. Shocker. However, sources close to the company described Wolfs as a “success” and insisted they’d be open to more Wolfs content. Sure, Apple. But with Watts out of the picture, one wonders if the next Wolfs will still have the same bite, or if it’ll just be a toothless cash grab.
