Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh has spoken to NME about the upcoming sequel to the cult film based on his book.
Trainspotting 2 – officially billed as T2 Trainspotting – will see the original cast of the 1996 movie, including stars Ewan McGregor and Robert Carlyle, team up again with director Danny Boyle. It will be released on January 27, 2017 in the UK and February 3 in the US. The first trailer was released earlier this week.
Speaking to NME about whether he had any reservations about making a sequel to such a beloved movie, Welsh said: “We were all nervous before we decided to do it… [but] once we saw the script, everybody was confident that we were certainly not going to trash the legacy of the first film and that we were going to build on it.”
“It has managed to take the most dynamic elements of the [Trainspotting] book and Porno [Trainspotting sequel book, on which T2 is partially based] but also look forward to how it can be contemporary and present day… In some ways, I think it’s a better movie [than Trainspotting]… They have become such iconic characters and this is going to cement that status even more.”
“It feels like a big epic movie,” Welsh went on to say. “I’m very, very excited about it and I think people are going to be excited [too]. You’ll always get the critics who moan about it not being the original Trainspotting movie or being too much like it… [but] it’s going to be a great film, a great standalone film but also work with the first film as well to bring that whole world together.”
Getty ImagesDescribing the movie as feeling “very now”, Welsh added: “I think it’s a magnificent achievement to be able to do that, to keep the spirit of the book but also to make a modern British film.”
Explaining what it was like for the cast and crew to work together again 20 years on, Welsh compared the situation to a band reunion for the right reasons: “Everybody is older and so much more skilled. Everybody is really hungry again and vibing being back together. [It’s like] when you watch a band get back together and a lot of bands you see, their kids have grown up, they’ve got divorced or they need money, that kind of thing, but they aren’t really producing good stuff. That was one of the most important things, to see if we were still creating that buzz working together.”
Read Irvine Welsh’s full NME interview next week.
Welsh previously revealed that the sequel will see his much-loved characters Renton, Begbie, Sick Boy and Spud find a “very innovative” way to get involved in the world of pornography.
“I tell you, this film is going to be quite emotional for people. Because the film sort of tells you to think about yourself. You are going to be thinking: ‘Fuck. What have I done with my life?’” Robert Carlyle told NME last year.
READ MORE: Trainspotting 2: Everything We Know So Far About Danny Boyle’s Upcoming Sequel