Will there be Pineapple Express 2? Seth Rogen says ‘Maybe one day'

Hindustan Times

3 days ago

Even after more than 15 years, fans of Pineapple Express haven't stopped asking if they'll ever get to see Dale and Saul back on screen. The 2008 stoner action-comedy, starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, became a cult favourite after making over $100 million at the box office on a $26 million budget. But despite the movie's success—and repeated fan requests—a sequel has never happened. Seth Rogen and James Franco in a still from The Pineapple Express
When Seth recently appeared on Watch What Happens Live, host Andy Cohen read out a viewer question about whether a follow-up could be on the cards. 'Maybe,' Seth said. 'We can probably sell it to streaming or something,' he added.
After Andy pointed out that there's 'a big demand' for it, Seth responded, 'There could be. You never know. I don't know. I'm not great with sequels. It's not where my mind goes, but maybe one day.'
Seth co-wrote the screenplay with Evan Goldberg, from a story developed with Judd Apatow, who also produced the film. Directed by David Gordon Green, it also featured Gary Cole, Rosy Perez and Danny McBride. A sequel was briefly in development after the original's success but was ultimately scrapped.
'We tried to make one,' Seth said on The Howard Stern Show in 2020. 'Thanks to the Sony hack, you can actually find the email when Sony decided to kill the movie and not make it. It was something we were very open to several years ago, but Sony was not that interested in it,' he added.
Politics behind the scenes also seemed to play a role. 'I think we probably wanted too much money. Studios, they don't like giving away money,' Seth admitted.
Fans have been teased before. In 2013, Sony dropped a fake Pineapple Express 2 trailer for April Fool's Day to promote Seth's This Is the End, which even included a tongue-in-cheek scene of Seth and James making their own low-budget sequel during the apocalypse. But the real thing looks unlikely—especially since the two leads aren't on speaking terms anymore. In a 2024 interview with Variety, James had said, 'No. I haven't talked to Seth. I love Seth, we had 20 great years together, but I guess it's over. And not for lack of trying. I've told him how much he's meant to me.'
Even producer Judd Apatow—who recently revealed he once had 'an amazing idea' for a follow-up—doesn't see it happening. And with Seth and Evan busy producing shows like The Boys, James immersed in his own creative projects, and Green and McBride tied up with Halloween and The Righteous Gemstones, it seems the closest fans will get to a sequel is still the April Fool's joke.