It’s been confirmed that a sequel to 2018 mystery thriller Searching is in the works. Will Merrick and Nick Johnson have been tapped to make their directorial debut on Searching 2, having worked as editors on the first movie.

Though plot details are still under wraps, the sequel will have little to do with its predecessor. Searching starred Star Trek’s John Cho as a father looking for his missing 16-year-old daughter (Michelle La) through clues left on her laptop. Searching’s mystery is told entirely through computer and smartphone screens, using CCTV footage, social media, instant messaging, and online banking transactions to communicate events. Arguably the most successful movie shot in the so-called “Screenlife” format to date, one may even go so far as to say that Searching is to Screenlife what The Blair Witch Project is to found footage.

And while Searching 2 will of course employ the same format as its predecessor, it will tell a brand-new story and feature a new cast of characters. Aneesh Chaganty, who directed the first film, explained that “with such restrictive visual parameters, a movie like Searching 2 requires a fresh visual style to separate it from the original. I’ve contributed what I can to this growing sub-genre. But if there’s anyone on the planet with the potential to take it even further, it’s Nick and Will, who were there from the beginning.” Chaganty will be involved as producer.

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