WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Antlers, now in domestic theaters.
In Scott Cooper's Antlers, the finale paints a harrowing picture as Keri Russell's Julia comes face to face with the Wendigo at last. After it possessed Frank, it kidnaps his sons, Lucas and Aiden, taking them to the mining cave in their small Oregon town, only to be betrayed by Lucas. However, after the kid helps Julia kill it, she has to murder the infected Aiden as well, ending the movie on a heartbreaking note. With that in mind, let's dissect how a sequel could shape up, especially as there's a cool little nugget right at the very end to expand the franchise.
Paul's Transformation Into The Wendigo in Antlers
Most of this film plays on the psychological aspect, with isolation, abuse and grief wracking Lucas as he tries to care for Frank and Aiden at home. That eventually backfires, with Lucas accepting that his family became monsters and had to die. A similar angle is then set up as the film ends with Paul, Julia's brother and the town sheriff, coughing up black blood, confirming Frank infected him too.
But rather than a hunt, a sequel can deal with the human condition and Julia fighting off a double standard. She killed Aiden easily, accepting he was suffering with no cure, so we can now explore Lucas encouraging her to do the same to a captive Paul. We already got the monster causing mayhem, so a new dive into Julia's psyche, rehashing the abuse they endured thanks to their own dad, would be pretty riveting. She returned to town for Paul, after all, so it'd take a lot out of her to kill him.
Antlers Can Spawn A Prequel
The retired sheriff, Stokes, was the one who educated Julia and Paul on the Wendigo lore, confirming it took over an old hunter long ago, turning him into a cannibal. The prequel can follow this backstory; why he was turned and how the Wendigo goes after evil men who are hurting the planet. Frank was a drug dealer, while climate change and pollution brought it back up from the mines, so it can even explore other folks who got secretly infected over the years for their sins.
It can also be a period piece a la The Revenant, with the Wendigo hunting men and animals such as bears in the snowy town. This can do the Indigenous people more justice, bringing them into the story genuinely and not as plot crutches just to share insight. It'd explore their culture more and how old shamans used mysticism to keep the being trapped.
An Antlers Sequel Can Make The Wendigo A Pandemic
Sci-fi and horror have often explored pandemics in terms of vampires, werewolves and zombies, so Paul's infection can focus on a mutated world years later, like a scarier version of Netflix's Sweet Tooth. It'd be intriguing to know Paul became the new patient zero, spreading the Wendigo virus and converting people to monsters, which can even have Julia or a grown-up Lucas trying to survive down the line.
A post-apocalyptic story has much potential, with humans turning on each other to survive, as well as packs of Wendigos hunting for food. This would certainly change up the monster game in the industry, adding something more unique with different creature designs amid a world run amok.
See how potential horror chapters have been set up for Antlers, now playing in domestic theaters.