Back in 2008, Amitabh Bachchan starred in a supernatural-comedy drama Bhoothnath where he played the character of the titular ghost who forms a bond with a young kid living with his family in the house he haunts.

Besides Amitabh Bachchan, the film also featured Juhi Chawla, child actor Aman Siddiqui, Satish Shah, Rajpal Yadav, Priyanshu Chatterjee and Shah Rukh Khan in an extended cameo appearance.

The Vivek Sharma directorial was a box office success.

© BR Films

In 2014, its sequel, Bhoothnath Returns released which was only remotely connected to the first part and was about the titular ghost played by Amitabh Bachchan who decides to contest election against a former criminal turned corrupt politician played by Boman Irani.

The film also starring child actor Parth Bhalerao, Usha Jadhav and Sanjay Mishra, featured Shah Rukh Khan reprising his role from the first film. Additionally, it also had cameos by Ranbir Kapoor and Anurag Kashyap.

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari of Dangal fame, Bhoothnath Returns was a critical and commercial success.

© BR Films

Now, a decade later, a new report has claimed that the makers are planning Bhoothnath 3.

Considering the immense success of the recent horror-comedies like Munjya, Stree 2 and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, it doesn’t come as a surprise that the makers are planning to revive the kid-friendly franchise.

A source told Pinkvilla, “Bhoothnath 3 is in the development stage at the moment, and the producers are toying with the idea of bringing Bhoothnath back to the spectacle. If everything goes as planned, Bhoothnath 3 will go on floors in 2025, for a 2026 release. The script work has begun and the makers are happy with the germ that they have for Bhoothnath 3.”

© BR Films

It is further revealed that while the casting of the film isn’t locked, makers hope to bring Amitabh Bachchan back in the lead role with Shah Rukh Khan, “While part one and two had a cameo of Shah Rukh Khan, the makers are aiming at bigger goals for the third instalment, though everything will boil down to the script eventually. It’s too early in the day to discuss casting, as the makers are presently focusing on getting the script right. A director will be associated once the script is locked.”

Interestingly, T-Series also owns the Bhool Bhulaiyaa franchise and are confident that they will be able to create another successful horror-comedy franchise with Bhoothnath.

Talking about the Amitabh Bachchan starrer, the source said, “What separates Bhoothnath from all other horror comedies is the fact that the ghost in Bhoothnath is loveable and comes back for a personal reason. The idea is to create a franchise where the part of the ghost is loved by one and all, especially the kids.”