Red, White & Royal Blue movie: Why we need a sequel now!
Amazon Prime’s smash hit queer rom-com Red, White & Royal Blue has been live to stream for less than a week, and already the movie has slid into the number 2 spot of most watched films, right behind Barbie on the popular social film platform Letterboxd. Directed by Matthew Lopez and starring Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez in the lead roles, this very queer love story has captured the hearts and minds of people all around the globe. Its immediate success has people chattering: will audiences be lucky enough to get a sequel now?
Based on the novel of the same title by Casey McQuiston, this story was already wildly popular before the movie hit our screens this week. The version of Alex and Henry that lives in McQuiston’s novel already had a cult following of dedicated fans begging for more insight into the lives of these two characters.
The idea of a sequel to this story was already being suggested way back in 2019. In an interview with Hello, when asked about the possibility of a sequel, McQuiston, who goes by they/them pronouns, said, “Anything’s possible… I will say I have plenty of ideas for stories set in this world and would love the chance to explore one of them some day. I would be surprised if you’ve seen the last of Alex and Henry.”
Since the publication of this interview, McQuiston has released a special edition of the original Red, White & Royal Blue book to include a bonus chapter at the end, written from Henry’s perspective. This particular chapter canvases their life after Ellen Claremont is re-elected as president and readers get an insight into the life that Henry and Alex have together in Brooklyn as they prepare for their marriage.
The writing and publication of this extra chapter was concurrently in the works with the production of Amazon Prime’s adaptation of the book. The movie hit screens globally on August 11, 2023, and does not include material from the said chapter. With the instant success of the filming, fans are now asking, will there be a sequel now?
Director Matthew Lopez told Hello in an interview, “Even if Casey never wrote a book, I would if there was a demand for it,” director Matthew Lopez told HELLO!, adding: “And if Casey and Taylor [Zahkar Perez] and Nick [Galitzine] wanna work on it, then who am I to say no?”
Surpassing Oppenheimer and falling into second place behind Barbie as the most popular movie on Letterboxd, it’s clear there is a demand to see this story continue. Fans have taken to the internet to make their cries known: they want a sequel, and they want a sequel now!
For us here at the Q+ Magazine offices, if we did get a sequel now, we’d love to see some of the domestic bliss that made its way into Henry’s bonus chapter, but what we’d really like to see is some of the things that Casey McQuiston set up in this extra chapter that clearly hasn’t happened in the trajectory of their lives yet.
Like their wedding. Everyone wants to see that, right? Alex and Henry living on a ranch in Texas, that’s a must. Henry looking after kids and Alex running for office in Austin; how can we live without that vision on our screens? Audiences watching them as their love continues to deepen for each other as each day passes them by… yes please!
Whether it’s McQuiston who writes the book first (what a treasure that would be) or Lopez who takes the story and runs with it on his own, it’s clear from the Red, White & Royal Blue movie that these characters, our beloved Henry and Alex, are in good hands, no matter which way it goes.
On behalf of fans everywhere, to the powers that be in charge of the Red, White & Royal Blue universe, can we have a sequel now? Pretty please?
Red, White & Royal Blue is available to stream through Amazon Prime Video now. Casey McQuiston’s original novel is available to purchase through all good book retailers globally. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for all queer stuff!
