When speaking to IGN, acclaimed South African director Neill Blomkamp revealed that District 10 will be based in "American history." Blomkamp's sci-fi classic District 9 was released back in 2009, and while a sequel was always on the table, he announced back in February that they are moving ahead on a script by him, star Sharlto Copley and co-writer Terri Tatchell.
When released, District 9 was hailed as a new sci-fi classic, a story that follows the creation of the titular location, an internment camp for sick aliens who crashed in Johannesburg in the 1980s. Wikus Van De Merwe (Copley), a bureaucrat at the Department of Alien Affairs, becomes infected by an alien fluid, and slowly turns into one of them.
Instead of continuing the story in South Africa, Blomkamp is looking to change the setting to one in America: "that script continues to be written. It's looking good. It took a decade to figure out, to come up with a reason why to make that film as opposed to just make a sequel."
District 9 was inspired by events in Cape Town's District Six, an actual internment camp during the apartheid era. The film deals with themes of xenophobia, racism, immigration, and more, which (to the surprise of no one), is also deeply connected to American history. A similar storyline would fit perfectly into current and past social politics, and could turn the District movies into something like an anthology series.
After only making three films in 10 years, Blomkamp is back with a vengeance, as District 10 is just one of several upcoming projects he's working on. He recently debuted Demonic, a supernatural horror movie filmed during the height of the pandemic, at the 2021 Berlin International Film Festival. The film follows the feud between a mother and her daughter, when the latter unleashes terrifying demons and their decades-old rift is reignited.
Additionally, Blomkamp is working on yet another horror film called The Inferno with Taylor Kitsch. Kitsch stars as a cop who investigates a murder in New Mexico, uncovering a conspiracy that may be connected to a homicidal humanoid beast. While Blomkamp's films may sometimes be hit-or-miss, you've got to give him points for originality and style, as his concepts are always incredibly interesting.
District 10 is still in the early stages of pre-production, but if you're looking for your Blomkamp fix, Demonic is hitting American theaters on August 20.