Thanksgiving 2 was officially announced just two weeks after the first film hit theaters in 2023, with TriStar originally aiming to release the sequel in time for the holiday in 2025.

However, the follow-up has yet to enter production due to scheduling conflicts — including Addison Rae’s touring commitments and Milo Manheim signing on for the live-action Tangled.

Despite the delays, Eli Roth is confident that the killer John Carver will return when the timing is right.

“Everybody wants to do it. I’m gonna have it locked and loaded, and we’ll find a time when we’re all available,” Roth told Variety. “We’ll just go back for a few weeks and have fun.”

Roth will return to direct, working from a script he co-wrote with Jeff Rendell. Nell Verlaque and Rick Hoffman are expected to reprise their roles alongside Rae and Manheim.

“We’re upping the ante but we are not going to do it with more money,” Roth teased. “I want it to be a challenge to pull off. Because if I’ve come up with the stuff that I think will make the best kills, then I’m going to do it like I’m never going to make another movie again.”

The first Thanksgiving plunged audiences into terror after a Black Friday riot ends in tragedy, unleashing a mysterious, Thanksgiving-themed killer on Plymouth, Massachusetts — the birthplace of the holiday. What begins as seemingly random revenge killings soon reveals a larger, sinister plan.

While fans wait for the sequel, Roth is keeping busy with his Horror Section Studios projects, including Ice Cream Man and Don’t Go in That House, Bitch! He’s also developing a Hostel TV series for Peacock, ensuring his signature brand of gruesome horror stays alive and thriving.