Rhys Darby is reprising his Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle role as the NPC and players’ guide Nigel in Sony’s as-yet untitled sequel, Jumanji 3. Technically a sequel to the 1995 Jumanji movie, Welcome to the Jungle hit theaters in December 2017 and went on to become a box office smash-hit fueled by great word of mouth. Unlike the ’90s film and the book that inspired it, the followup added a new twist where the enchanted Jumanji board game transforms itself into a video game that sucks players into its universe. There, they play as in-world avatars with various strengths and weaknesses (or just strengths, in Smolder Bravestone’s case).
Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, and Nick Jonas are reprising their roles as the in-game avatars for Jumanji 3. They will be joined in the film by Welcome to the Jungle costars Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, and Alex Wolff, who played the teenagers that got sucked into the Jumanji game, the last time around. Now, we have confirmation that at least one more actor from Welcome to the Jungle is coming back for this new adventure.
According to Deadline, Darby is set to reprise his role as Nigel for Jumanji 3. He and his Welcome to the Jungle costars will be joined in this film’s cast by the franchise newcomers Awkwafina, Danny DeVito, Danny Glover, and Dania Ramirez in as-yet undisclosed roles.
In a separate report, RTF claims that Bebe Neuwirth (Madam Secretary) and Lamorne Morris (New Girl) have also joined the film’s cast, along with Danny DeVito’s daughter Lucy DeVito. Neuwirth, for those who’ve forgotten, costarred in Jumanji (1995) as Nora Shepherd, whose niece and nephew (Judy and Peter) served as the film’s kid protagonists. Assuming this report is correct, it stands to reason that Neuwirth will be reprising her Jumanji role in Jumanji 3, as a way of better connecting the films. Welcome to the Jungle director Jake Kasdan, who’s coming back for the third movie, has confirmed that Jumanji 3 will include more connections to the first film, much like the sequel before it. Based on that, it’s plausible that Neuwirth’s character will end up being one of the links that he referenced.
Beyond that, however, Kasdan has indicated that Jumanji 3 will feel like a direct sequel to Welcome to the Jungle, more than anything else. It’s only fitting, then, that Darby is coming back to play Nigel and once again guide players (whomever they end up being this time) through the wild and often life-threatening world of Jumanji. There’s no word yet on whether or not Bobby Cannavale will also return as the villainous Van Pelt but, considering he was defeated at the end of the last movie, odds are the series’ heroes will battle a different antagonist in Jumanji 3.
MORE: Everything You Need to Know About Jumanji 3
Source: Deadline, RTF
- Jumanji 3 Release Date: 2019-12-13
