Judd Apatow says This Is 50 might be his next film

Judd Apatow is apparently well on his way to fleshing out his own version of Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy, as the director and producer recently revealed that This Is 50 is one of two projects he’s considering after he wraps work on his most recent movie, The Bubble. As the title suggests, the film would revisit the lives of married couple Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann)—first created by Apatow for Knocked Up—roughly a decade after the events of 2012's This Is 40.

Apatow revealed his interest in the sequel during a Bubble-focused interview with The Wrap, noting that, “I couldn’t have done it five years ago and I can’t do it five years from now,” thus demonstrating a fairly astute grasp of the progression of linear time. He went on to say that, “I feel like [This Is 40] has really aged well, and it always feels like everyone watches it when they turn 40 and they go, ‘Oh, I understand it all now’. So I’m enthusiastic about putting that together.”

That being said, Apatow wasn’t ready to officially go on the record that 50 would be his next film, saying that it was one of two different possibilities he was considering. That being said: “I’m hoping that comes together. I have an idea that I really like for it.”

It’s worth noting that this little sub-universe of movies is decidedly a family affair for Apatow; he and Mann have been married for 25 years, and both of their daughters co-star in the movies as Pete and Debbie’s kids. (Presumably Rudd has some sort of Honorary Apatow certificate hanging around his house somewhere at this point, too.)

This Is 40 performed moderately well at the box office back in the day, at least by the standards of studio comedies; not a Knocked Up or 40-Year-Old Virgin performance, but significantly better than Apatow’s previous Funny People. The new film, if it’s made, would presumably be released by Universal, like its predecessor; Apatow recently signed a long-term first-look deal with the studio.