Ever since The Goonies was first released in 1985, multiple attempts to make a sequel have never panned out. Filled with humor, heart, adventure, and tons of classic lines, it’s no wonder there’s been such a demand for a follow-up for decades. Unfortunately, fans have had to endure countless promises and updates about a potential sequel from cast and crew members that have never been fulfilled. With this number of false starts, it’s safe to assume that The Goonies 2 will never happen, though don’t be surprised if we occasionally hear stories of “development.”
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This beloved film follows a group of kids – who’ve dubbed themselves the “Goonies” because of their residence in the “Goon Docks” neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon – as they embark on a zany adventure that involves buried treasure, an underground pirate ship, booby traps, and so much more. Produced by Steven Spielberg and directed by the late Richard Donner, The Goonies was a massive hit with audiences at its release and has developed a cult following. The film was filled with loveable young characters, many of whom would become successful Hollywood stars, including Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, and Ke Huy Quan.
With so many perfect elements, how has a Goonies sequel never happened?
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Warner Bros. Isn’t Interested
One of the first promising updates on The Goonies 2 came in 2005 at a “Goonies Never Say Die!” event in Astoria, Oregon, which celebrated the 20th anniversary of the film. During a Q&A at the event, actor Jeff Cohen (“Chunk”) revealed that Spielberg had approached him the year before about a story idea and that most of the cast was interested in returning. However, Warner Bros. who owns the rights to the film, apparently had no interest in making the movie. Still, Donner believed at this time that there was still a possibility the sequel would get off the ground, urging fans to complain to the studio.
The Goonies Go Animated?
The next big development of a Goonies follow-up occurred in 2007 when it was revealed that it would take the form of an animated series. According to the MTV Movies Blog, Feldman had heard about several story concepts that were being worked on but still didn’t seem too hopeful about its future, saying, “I would like to say that there’s a great writer on it and it’s coming soon [but] I have nothing for you. It’s a film Spielberg very badly wanted to make [and] Richard Donner very badly wanted to make. All of us [the cast] really, really wanted to do it…For whatever reason, Warner Bros. doesn’t see it as a profitable venture. It’s a very sad, unfortunate story.”
Richard Donner Gives Fans Hope
Since tentative plans to do an animated series based on The Goonies were announced in 2007, there weren’t any real updates until 2014 when Donner revealed to TMZ that he was serious about doing a sequel. The famed director told the outlet, “Hopefully, we’re going to get this done…Steven [Spielberg] came up with the idea of doing a sequel after 30 years…You don’t do it without him. We’ve been trying for a while, and then he came up with another storyline.”
Donner also revealed that he hoped to bring back the original cast, stating that they’d return “if they have any sense.” However, as usual, this news led to nothing.
A Promising Reunion?
In 2020, the first episode of Reunited Apart saw much of the original cast and creative crew behind The Goonies come together virtually to reminisce and reenact classic scenes. As expected, the idea of a sequel was brought up, as Spielberg revealed that, “Chris [Columbus, The Goonies screenwriter], Dick [Donnor] and I — and Lauren [Shuler Donner] — have had a lot of conversations about it. Every couple of years we come up with an idea but then it doesn’t hold water.”
While this did confirm that the main players of the original film were still interested in continuing its story, it did little in the way of offering an optimistic vision for its future.
Don’t Hold Your Breath
The 2020 cast and crew reunion didn’t lead anywhere, and fans were given even more false hope when Adam F. Goldberg – creator of ABC’s The Goldbergs – revealed in 2022 that he had spent years working on a script for a Goonies sequel that, of course, didn’t go anywhere.
Actor Joe Pantoliano (Francis Fratelli) confirmed this at Terrificon 2022, telling the audience, “Apparently, he [Goldberg] pitched Donner an idea — he would only show us the first three pages. That was the sequel version. I think, with the success of all of these sequel movies — Bad Boys for Life, Top Gun [Maverick] — for some reason, people really like going back and seeing these characters brought back to life. So I would hope we get to do another one with everybody.”
Unfortunately, the main reason why Goldberg’s script never got off the ground was Donner’s untimely death in 2021. We may never stop hearing the intermittent rumor of a Goonies sequel that’s supposedly in the works, perhaps it should never happen without such a talented director at the helm. Just because we may never get The Goonies 2, its legacy will live on forever – after all, if there’s one thing that that scrappy group of children taught us, it’s to never say die.