The most well-known villain from the Wrong Turn franchise, Three-Finger, was originally played by actor Julian Richings in the 2003 movie, but he didn't return to reprise the role in future installments.
Wrong Turn became an unlikely franchise after every installment after the first, which starred Eliza Dushku, Desmond Harrington, Emmanuelle Chriqui, and Jeremy Sisto, went direct to video. The 1980s influenced cannibal horror movie took obvious notes from films of the same sub-genre such as Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes and held fast to traditional slasher movie tropes. Written by Alan B. McElroy, who has notably contributed to the Halloween franchise and worked on Spawn, among other projects, Wrong Turn has kept its audience even through home video installments because it boasts copious amounts of blood and gore, horrifying cannibal killers, nudity, and creative kills.
Three-Finger was part of the original cannibal trio alongside his brothers, Saw Tooth and One Eye. While other members of the cannibal family were introduced throughout the series, Three-Finger is the only one to be featured in all six movies within the Wrong Turn franchise. Richings' performance as the small, nimble, tree-climbing killer was a standout, with his hair-raising cackle and gleeful delight in killing as opposed to the more lumbering, stoic mannerisms of his brothers. However, despite making an impression on fans, Richings did not reprise his role in future installments.
Why Julian Richings Didn't Reprise His Role As Three-Finger
There's no definitive reason why Richings didn't reprise his role in Wrong Turn 2 or any other installments within the franchise, however, there are a few possibilities. Richings is a long-time actor who is known for roles in numerous films and television series; he's easily mutable in his roles and takes to make-up and prosthetics quite well, as proven by his role in Wrong Turn, which featured practical and make-up effects from the legendary Stan Winston (Jurassic Park, Pumpkinhead). Like other actors who are often disguised by their role in some way or another, such as Doug Jones (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Shape of Water), Richings seems to be drawn to the horror genre because of his physical appearance and ability to completely lose himself in a role.
Richings has worked in major horror franchises like Saw and with masters of horror George A. Romero and James Wan. It's likely that Richings just had other projects booked and when Wrong Turn 2 was casting, he wasn't available. Wrong Turn 2 was filming in 2006, and Richings was working on multiple different projects; the actor is credited for ten different roles in 2006 alone. This seems to be the most likely reason why he didn't come back as Three-Finger, but the actor is still working as of 2020, so there's always potential that he could be available or interested in reprising his role in the future.
The Wrong Turn franchise has a seventh installment in the works, titled Wrong Turn: The Foundation which is expected to release sometime in either 2020 or 2021, depending on delays due to COVID-19. Wrong Turn 7 is in post-production, but there has been no trailer released or release date set as of this writing.