Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Black Phone.
Ethan Hawke's stellar performance as The Grabber, bolstered by a perfect storm of creative talent behind the camera, has earned The Black Phone both its phenomenal reception and the early sequel buzz that has followed the film's June 24th release - which perfectly sets up The Black Phone 2. Despite several delays throughout the course of 2022, The Black Phone still managed to exceed all expectations after its ultimate arrival in theaters. With writer Joe Hill, director Scott Derrickson, and Ethan Hawke himself all willing to return for a sequel, it seems that The Black Phone 2 may be more likely to happen than the end of the first film suggested.
The Black Phone ended on an optimistic note, as Finney escaped his captor and returned to the side of his younger sister Gwen. The Grabber also arrived at a just fate. After kidnapping and tormenting the victims of The Black Phone throughout the film's 103-minute runtime, The Grabber ultimately died at the hands of a supernaturally-inspired Finney. However, it's thanks to the uncertainty surrounding The Black Phone's supernatural ending that The Grabber can return at all.
Of course, the bone-chilling performance given by Ethan Hawke and the themes of The Black Phone's narrative have made Hawke's return as The Grabber ideal if The Black Phone 2 is to be made. The first film left behind plenty of opportunities to expand on the villainous origins of Hawke's character and on the supernatural elements present in both Finney's and The Grabber's lives. There's no better way to expand those areas than to revisit The Grabber's story. Whether that takes place before the first movie or at some point in Finney's future with a spectral villain remains to be seen. In this way, however, even the unanswered mysteries of The Black Phone can become valuable.
While the easiest way to bring Ethan Hawke back for The Black Phone 2 might be to set the film in the past, the aforementioned otherworldly properties scattered throughout The Black Phone make a future timeline appearance possible too. While The Grabber may have been killed, that's never stopped horror movie monsters from returning before. There's also the possibility that The Grabber becomes a spectral force, not unlike the ghosts Finney and Gwen interact with during the first film, as the limits of Gwen's and Finney's powers were never explained. The Black Phone also teased that The Grabber was attuned to the same spiritual force that connected Gwen and Finney to the dead. Since The Black Phone showed Finney's powers and their exact nature in a way that made them a mystery for the audience, it's already within the realm of possibility that The Grabber was more than just a man in a mask all along.
Allowing Ethan Hawke to return as an antagonistic force within the adult lives of Finney and Gwen would also strengthen the thematic content of the first film. The Black Phone's narrative dealt very heavily with bullying, abuse, and childhood trauma amidst the backdrop of a 1970s suburb. While these elements were approached with a sober sense of respect and skill, in reality, those types of experiences follow the survivors for much if not all of their lives. While the numerous victims of The Black Phone's villain expressed the complacency they'd find once The Grabber was dead, the same is not inherently true of surviving siblings.
Part of the journey traveled by any survivor of trauma is discovering what happens next. That question can be answered for Gwen and Finney by bringing back the antagonist of The Black Phone. Ethan Hawke has already proven his commitment to and capability within the role. If the themes of The Black Phone 2 are as mature as those of the first movie, the sequel deserves the tenure and talent that Ethan Hawke brings to The Grabber.