Richard Kelly is publishing a sequel novel titled The Philosophy of Time Travel, set after the events of the 2001 cult film Donnie Darko. The book marks Range Literary Publishing’s first novel and is set in 1988, immediately following the events of the film.
The Philosophy of Time Travel is timed to the film’s 25th anniversary, with a late-year release anticipated. Retail listings show December 15 as the release date, and pre-orders are available at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.
What the novel covers
The book is presented as a collection of discovered documents, alternating between entries attributed to Donnie’s mother and Donnie’s father. Kelly describes the core premise as beginning 14 months after Donnie’s death, then expanding into material that jumps 28 years into the future, into the period around 2015/2016 and beyond. He notes there could be animation in a later section and, if it happens, a 28-year jump that may feature the original cast in live-action segments, if they wish to participate.
Kelly also emphasized that he has not yet approached the Donnie Darko cast about a real-film sequel and wants The Philosophy of Time Travel to function as his pitch. He stated that reuniting the original cast and tackling a gigantic scale would require time and a significant budget, and would involve multiple films.
