"Orphan 3" in Works

A third entry in the "Orphan" horror franchise is in the works. 

The first movie "Orphan" premiered in 2009 from Jaume Collet-Serra and was loosely based on the troubling true-crime documentary "The Curious Case of Natalia Grace".

The movie follows the haunting story of a young orphan girl named Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman). 

She's adopted by a couple who recently experienced a devastating stillbirth with their third child. Upon bringing Esther home, the mother Kate (Vera Farmiga) quickly begins to notice that things with Esther are off, as violent acts seemingly follow her around. 

Eventually, it's revealed that Esther isn't an innocent 9-year-old girl, but in fact, a 33-year-old violent woman who has a rare hormonal disorder that stunts her physical growth. 

Horror queen Farmiga (The Conjuring Universe) and Sarsgaard (The Batman) star in the first film as the couple who initially adopts Esther/Leena, Kate and John. 

They are joined by CCH Pounder (Avatar) as Sister Abigail, Margo Martindale (The Good Wife) as Dr. Browning, and Karel Roden (Hellboy) as Dr. Värava. 

The second movie "Orphan: First Kill" was released in 2022 helmed by William Brent Bell. It served as a prequel story that uncovers Esther's life before being adopted. However, at this point, she's known as Leena Klammer. 

Leena is a psychiatric patient who goes on a violent journey that ends with her waiting to be adopted by Kate and her husband John (Peter Sarsgaard). Making the story come full circle. 

"Orphan: First Kill" was a major success with the film grossing over $37 million worldwide. It currently holds a 70% score on Rotten Tomatoes with an even higher audience score of 77%. 

The second movie brings an entirely new cast to the forefront — aside from Fuhrman of course. The young actress was joined by Julia Stiles (The Lake) as Tricia Albright and Rossif Sutherland portraying Allen Albright. Fun fact, Sutherland is the son of Donald Sutherland who Fuhrman worked with in the first Hunger Games film.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Bell spooke about the possibility of another Orphan movie.

“We’re developing a third one now. The franchise’s rulebook has been opened up to where anything is possible. And knowing where we are in the process already, I’m extremely excited about the twists and turns that we have in store,” he said. 

Bell continued to explain how his take on the prequel movie had a "very specific look" as the director "wanted to stay away from what the original movie did and do something a little different that leaned into our version of the story."