--- description: Studio sees the new book as an opportunity to start the franchise over title: 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' Sequel film in the Works image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # _The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo_ Sequel Film in the Works by [Tatiana Siegel and Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter](/author/the-hollywood-reporter/) ## Tatiana Siegel and Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 4, 2015 9:08 PM CUT by [Tatiana Siegel and Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter](/author/the-hollywood-reporter/) ## Tatiana Siegel and Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 4, 2015 9:08 PM CUT Lisbeth Salander will hack again on the big screen but not in _The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo_ sequel, _The Girl Who Played With Fire_. Instead, Sony is putting its focus on book No. 4 in the _Millennium_ series, _The Girl in the Spider’s Web_, the first book famously not written by creator Stieg Larsson. The studio is in early talks with Steven Knight (_Burnt_) to adapt the novel, which became an international best seller after it was published in September. Sources say that neither Rooney Mara, who nabbed a best actress Oscar nomination for _Dragon Tattoo_, nor Daniel Craig will be back, and the studio sees the new book as an opportunity to start the franchise over. Ditto for _Dragon Tattoo_ director David Fincher, who is not expected to return to Salander universe. But _Dragon Tattoo_ producer Scott Rudin is returning to produce alongside Amy Pascal, [who negotiated the rights in her exit package from the studio](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/will-new-dragon-tattoo-book-786863 "undefined"), and Elizabeth Cantillon (_Concussion_). Written by David Lagercrantz — who was hired after Larsson passed away in 2004 — _Spider’s Web_ follows superhacker Salander and investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist as they find themselves at the center of a tangled web of spies, cybercriminals and corrupt governments. Though 2011’s _Tattoo_ made $233 million worldwide, the film was deemed too expensive for a hard-R film thanks to a $90 million budget. The studio has options on Craig for two sequels, but the actor was said to want a pay raise, making his return impossible given the studio’s mandate to make _Spider’s Web_ at a much lower budget. The move doesn’t mean _Girl Who Played With Fire_ is altogether dead. After all, Sony paid mid-seven figures for Steven Zaillian’s script for _Girl Who Played With Fire_, one of the most expensive adaptations to date. But the plan for now is for _Spider’s Web_ to precede _Girl Who Played With Fire_. And once again, the role of Salander will be hotly pursued by Hollywood’s young actresses. Lagercrantz’s take was met with resistance by Larsson’s longtime girlfriend Eva Gabrielsson and even fans initially. But since publication, the book has been embraced by critics and the fan base. In September, Lagercrantz told _THR_ that [he views Salander as a classic superhero](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/bookmark/girl-spiders-web-dragon-tattoo-820047 "undefined"). “I saw her like Spiderman or Batman,” he said. “She was not just this great character. She also had this great background — this mythology — and I really felt that I wanted to develop it, dig into it.” Knight is an Oscar-nominated writer for his immigration drama _Dirty Pretty Things_. But he is also adept at bigger-budget studio fare, having written a draft of Paramount’s _World War Z_ sequel as well as Legendary’s _Seventh Son_. He is repped by CAA, United Artists in the U.K. and attorney George Davis. _This_ [_article_](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/girl-dragon-tattoo-follow-up-835991 "undefined") _originally appeared on_ [_The Hollywood Reporter_](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com "undefined") _More from The Hollywood Reporter:_ * [Broadcast TV’s New Shows 2015-16](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/gallery/broadcast-tvs-new-shows-2015-794118/1-blindspot-nbc "undefined") * [Hollywood’s Top 100 Films](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/list/100-greatest-films-all-time-713215 "undefined") * [New Gossip Culture](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/new-gossip-culture-814841 "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4100350/girl-in-the-spider-web-dragon-tattoo-sequel/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4100350/girl-in-the-spider-web-dragon-tattoo-sequel/"},"headline":"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Sequel Film in the Works","datePublished":"2015-11-04T21:08:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T12:20:57.543Z","description":"Studio sees the new book as an opportunity to start the franchise over","url":"https://time.com/4100350/girl-in-the-spider-web-dragon-tattoo-sequel/","keywords":["movies","Books"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tatiana Siegel and Borys Kit / The Hollywood Reporter"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4100350/girl-in-the-spider-web-dragon-tattoo-sequel/","name":"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Sequel Film in the Works"}}]}] ```