My pitch for a sequel to The Sorcerer's Apprentice 2010
So, this is gonna be a very niche topic, but I watched the 2010 film The Sorcerer's Apprentice starring Nic Cage the other night, and I realized just how unique of a film it was. While the plot itself is rather basic and contrived, the lore they established was crazy. They tried their darnedest to interweave scientific principles into every magical force. So many spells and magic concepts in this film aren't just plain magic, but magic with scientific reasoning - even down to Morgana's evil plan using satellites to make the spell circle, because the signals needed to contact the dead work similar to the signals that satellites send and receive on a daily basis. Maybe it's not totally thought out, but just the idea of integrating science and magic felt pretty cool for its time - keep in mind this came out before the Thor and Doctor Strange films, which kinda popularized magic being a form of science we can't understand. I also liked how sorcerers were established to be from all across the earth, not just in Britain, despite Merlin being the at the epicenter of the plot. It makes the film feel less euro-centric than other films with this similar magical chosen-one concept.
So after watching the post-credits and seeing that Horvath (the main villain) was still alive, my thoughts started roaming as to how a sequel would work. Not that it will happen since this movie bombed, but I do think there's a chance to take the concepts of the original movie even further. I don't know if I got it in me to write a whole script but I can at least give a brief outline.
Quick note; please watch or read a summary of The Sorcerer's Apprentice before reading this; I don't have it in me to explain that whole movie's plot before going into this one
So the film itself is titled: "Night On Bald Mountain." Since the first film didn't do so hot anyway, there's no pressure in calling it "Sorcerer's Apprentice 2." Plus, I think it'd be cool if each film focused on a different segment from Fantasia, with this new film focusing on arguably the second most popular one. The main plot of this film would be Dave training a group of young adult sorcerers attempting to stop Horvath from summoning Chernabog to destroy the world.
The first scene would center on a boy in his late teens, trying to get by in his small town with poor income (in my head, he's Native American and living on a reservation, but I'm not set on the specifics yet). One night, just before going out to meet with some friends, he comes across a ring from one his grandparents - whom unbeknownst him was a sorcerer. As he puts the ring on, there's some magic effects, but nothing else at first. Then, as he's outside he starts to do magic without even realizing it, performing a spell that is specific to his culture (you know, like the Persian quick rug or the Hungarian mirror trap from the first one). Suddenly, the ring starts to have a mind of his own and it leads him to sorcerer duel between Horvath and an older Dave Stuttler. Our new protag gets caught in the crossfire and Dave ends up saving him with his own magic, giving Horvath the chance to escape. Dave sees the boy has a ring and decides to bring him somewhere where he can grow his powers just like Dave had to.
We learn that since the events of the first film, Dave has become a Physics professor at a nearby university, and using the campus' resources, he has put together an underground magical study hall, where he trains some teen to young adult sorcerers to harness their powers and protect the world from evil threats like Horvath. It is here we are introduced to our core ensemble of sorcerers, each of whom would come from a unique background/ethnicity and would each have their own perspective on the purpose of magic. Delving into each of these characters will make up most of our middle act. I think it'd be cool if one of them could be Dave and Becky's kid, just to have a parental pressure trope thrown in, but also that kid would be nonbinary (because nb people are often seen as more magical in various cultures/myths) and have a romance with our current pov protag.
Over the course of the film, we find out that Horvath has been trying to search for Chernabog's current resting place, as the encantus reveals Chernabog to be a demon predating humanity itself, a force of nature that comes to cleanse the earth. It is implied he may have influenced wiping out the dinosaurs, showing just how much might he has. Our young sorcerers try to hunt down his resting spot while mastering their powers.
At some point before the third act, we find out that Dave's powers have been dwindling over time. It turns out after he defeated Morgana, his role as the Prime Merlinean came to an end, meaning his powers are no longer needed. In the same vein, we find out that Balthazar (Nic Cage's character) had died some time ago, because his duty to find and train the Prime Merlinean was the one reason he could stay alive for centuries. In case you're wondering, Veronica would still be alive, but she's retired from sorcery since she is grieving and also didn't seem to like magic anyway. She won't play into the plot much except to give a speech to Dave about mentoring the kids, and maybe throw a blast at Horvath during one of his attacks (I'd want at least one line about how she could never fall for him like he'd want her to). But as Horvath attacks the underground hall and gains everything he needs to summon Chernabog, Dave's powers fully vanish, meaning the fate of the world now rests on the young sorcerer group's shoulders.
Each member has a different perspective. Some want to kill Horvath while there's still time. Some want to convince Horvath that the summoning isn't worth it. Some want to let him summon Chernabog and try to take him down. During all this, our protag discovers that there is a special photon-based magic that can silence Chernabog's wrath (which would mirror the way he was taken out in the original sequence). While not everyone agrees its the best choice, they each learn the magic; I'd imagine Horvath also finds out about it, but doesn't know it only works for pure souls (science-wise I'd try to relate it to mental health in some way, maybe with his cortisol-levels, how he had kept all this stress from his mission to end humanity, trauma from being rejected and choosing not to deal with those feelings in a healthy way).
The final battle will take place at Yellowstone (which I chose since it's an active volcano), where Chernabog is about to come up. Horvath and the young sorcerers have one last skirmish beforehand. As Chernabog arises, his actions are one-for-one with the original sequence (or as close as we can get). No-one is able to stop his wrath as he toys with the fleeing mortals. Horvath along with some wicked followers are smited at this time. Then, as it seems no-one is left, one by one, the young sorcerers shine their lights, signaling Chernabog to end his torment. I want this to come off not as Chernabog being defeated, but that he has properly played his part. He may be a demon, but he is also part of the natural order, which must be respected (connecting right back to Merlin's philosophy from the first movie on not wanting to raise the dead). That would be the main theme here, not to focus on conflict, but on caring and connecting with people around you, no matter how different. Those who are too stubborn to connect will get their comuppance one way or another. After this, everyone goes back to their families and enjoys their new leases on life while "Ave Maria" plays in the background.
And that's what I got. I'd hope a sequel to The Sorcerer's Apprentice could be more faithful to its source than the original was, while also dealing with some unique concepts that just a basic chosen-one prophecy. I think I was able to do that here, but I'd love to hear any other ideas people may have. If you made it this far, I'd appreciate any feedback you got. Again, I doubt I'm going to develop this much further, but I just got so intrigued by the premise of sequel, that I just had to share these thoughts somewhere. Who knows, maybe I'll play around with this more at some point.
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