Diablo Cody says Jennifer's Body 2 will make Jennifer sympathetic

Jennifer is coming back, and her writer wants you to see her differently.

Screenwriter Diablo Cody says the planned Jennifer's Body 2 will spend more time on why Jennifer is sympathetic and what she has been through. She shared the idea on the Petticoat Revolution podcast, in comments reported by Deadline on 17 October 2026. It is the clearest hint yet at the direction of the follow-up.

Cody is developing the sequel for 20th Century Studios. She said the project is being made imminently. No start date, release date or full creative team has been announced.

Cody put loneliness at the centre of her description of Jennifer. She called the character isolated, lonely and insecure before her transformation. She was lonely before. She was lonely after.

That focus reframes a character first introduced as a confident high-school favourite. The behaviour around her did not protect her. Her insecurity stayed with her after everything changed.

For anyone coming fresh to the story, the original Jennifer's Body arrived in 2009 and was directed by Karyn Kusama. It starred Megan Fox as Jennifer and Amanda Seyfried as Needy, her best friend since childhood. After a satanic ritual sacrifice staged by a boy band led by Adam Brody, Jennifer is left possessed by a succubus, a demon that feeds on boys.

Both Fox and Seyfried have expressed interest in returning for the sequel. No casting has been confirmed, and no deals have been announced.

The first film has stayed in conversation long after release. Fox spoke about her gratitude for the chance to work with Cody during a TIFF '09 press conference, in footage shared by TIFF. Ten years later, Fox and Cody interviewed each other for ET Online to mark the anniversary, in a conversation that covered backlash, Hollywood, motherhood and reboots.

For fans, this means a shift in emphasis rather than a restart. Less attention on the shock around Jennifer, more on the life that left her exposed in the first place. If the sequel holds to that plan, Jennifer's past will drive what happens next.