As The Playlist piece notes, the recently ended WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes have complicated schedules even further. But perhaps more problematic than the increasingly busy professional schedules of Judd Apatow’s family is his own booming career, as the writer, director, and producer continues to rank among the most in-demand comedic filmmakers in the business. In the last five years alone, Apatow has produced dozens of projects and directed four of his own, including a pair of documentaries as well as the feature films “The King of Staten Island” and “The Bubble.
As Apatow himself admitted to The Playlist, he may have a few projects ready to roll before he gets around to “This is 50” anyway. Though he didn’t offer specifics on any of them, the filmmaker — who spoke to the publication before the end of the strikes — claimed he’s raring to go on at least one, noting, “I wrote a film; I’m just waiting for all these strikes to end to see if they’ll allow me to make it.”
With both strikes now officially in the rearview mirror, Apatow may be looking to fast-track that project — assuming, of course, a studio is ready to back it. But even if said project does go straight into development, he’ll likely be busy working on it for the better part of the next year or two. That means it’ll be at least that long before he can truly contemplate a sequel to “This is 40.” At this rate, the gang may be closer to 60 by the time Apatow gets around to making the sequel, especially when you account for the perpetually stacked schedule of current MCU all-star Paul Rudd.
