As with many well-known horror movie franchises, you’ll struggle to find someone who thinks that the Leprechaun series should have gone on for as long as it has or a critic who can muster up great review scores for more than half of the entries.

That doesn’t matter, though, as Hollywood loves to milk old movies right now, especially with streaming services buying up anything and everything pitched these days. It looks like Lionsgate is now looking to cash in on the Leprechaun series, again, and there’s even a director interested.

Popularity and draw of the Leprechaun

Leprechaun (8/11) Movie CLIP - I'm a Leprechaun (1993) HD

The Leprechaun movies are from that grand age of horror movies taking something sweet or mystical and turning it into a blood-thirsty monster. Leprechauns are usually billed as cheery little chaps who dance around rainbows and covet gold. They’re instantly recognizable as a symbol of Irish luck, which is why they work so well in the Rainbow Riches slot in the iGaming sector.

Similarly to the Leprechaun movies, the Rainbow Riches series is one of the longest-running of its kind, splitting off into many different kinds of games. However, the original is the classic and the one that slot gamers gravitate to – especially for its many mini bonus games and 500x jackpot. This is one of the reasons why the Leprechaun movies stand out: they completely break the general perception of Leprechauns.

Having Warwick Davis add some punchy comedy certainly helped because, as a pure horror, it could be difficult to land any of the Leprechaun movies. Still, they stuck to the stereotypes, pumped in the gore, and made Lubdan the Leprechaun a genuinely creepy and murderous being. As iconic as the movie may be, and fun to know for the quizzes as Jennifer Aniston’s film debut, critics haven’t been able to get behind the series.

As the Rotten Tomatoes editorial explains, the Leprechaun movies don’t have to earn high critical ratings to be a bit of fun, which is good, because the highest-rated film in the series got 45 percent. That was Leprechaun Returns from 2018, which is somehow followed by Leprechaun in the Hood from 2000! Leprechaun 3, Leprechaun: Origins from 2014, and Leprechaun 4: In Space proved to be the very low points.

Time to get Lubdan back on the big screen

Leprechaun Returns Trailer (2018)

Even with critical damnation, almost, Bloody Disgusting sources indicate that Lionsgate is looking to get the Leprechaun series going again. The report came four years after Leprechaun Returns, which took place along the original timeline from Davis’ days in the role, rather than following the reboot flick, Origins. Importantly, there’s well-known interest from a notable director.

Darren Lynn Bousman has long been vocal on Twitter about his desire to get a Leprechaun film going. He’s best known for his work in the Saw series, having directed Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, and Spiral, but was also behind the camera for Mother’s Day, Death of Me, and Abattoir. Having any director this eager to take on a movie would only help its chances, especially as we’ve seen so many reboots and new entries come across as so corporatized.

Given its low return in its few stints at the box office, Lionsgate may not even go through with a new Leprechaun movie. That said, Davis did just come back to Willow, so maybe he’d consider another Leprechaun movie. If he did, it’d certainly raise the potential of a new movie drawing in audiences.