Hereditary prequel script exists but Ari Aster has no plans to develop it

• Aster wrote a Hereditary prequel script but says the timing never felt right.
• Hereditary has grossed over 90 million dollars at the worldwide box office.
• Aster's next film, Scapegoat, will star Scarlett Johansson and be released via A24.

Despite the considerable financial and critical triumph of Ari Aster's feature debut Hereditary, the horror filmmaker has no plans to revisit that world in the near future — even though a prequel script already exists.

Speaking at a Q&A session during the American Cinematheque's annual Bleak Week — a curated programme featuring his work, including Midsommar: Director's Cut, Beau Is Afraid, and Eddington — Aster disclosed that he had written a script set within the Hereditary universe, but had no current intention of taking it further.

"I wrote a prequel to this," Aster said, per Gold Derby. "It never feels like the right time. It's a prequel, not a sequel, so I don't know where this goes."

About Hereditary

Released in 2018, the occult psychological horror placed Aster firmly on the map and set records for A24 at the time, going on to accumulate a worldwide box office gross in excess of $90 million.

Written and directed by Aster, the supernatural film centres on a family gripped by grief who begin to encounter disturbing, unexplained events. The film stars Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd, and Gabriel Byrne.

What Aster is working on next

While the Graham family story remains on hold for now, Aster is actively developing a new project. Sources told Deadline last month that he is set to direct Scapegoat, a film written by Aster himself, with Scarlett Johansson attached to star.

The project will see Aster reunite with A24, the distributor behind all four of his previous features. Plot details are, as is customary for Aster's projects, being kept under wraps. Scapegoat will follow his 2025 satirical neo-noir Eddington.

Square Peg Social returns

Beyond his work as a director, Aster's production company Square Peg — co-founded with Lars Knudsen — has announced the return of its filmmaker mentorship programme, Square Peg Social. The second edition of the initiative will be held in Austin from 17 to 21 September, with submissions now open.