Mara Wilson Shares Her Thoughts on a Potential ‘Matilda’ Sequel

Nearly 30 years after "Matilda" hit theaters, its former child star has plenty to say about where the story could go next. Mara Wilson isn't ruling out a follow-up, but she's already poking holes in the most common pitch.

Hollywood's love affair with sequels and reboots shows no signs of slowing down.

Recent years have brought "Freakier Friday," a follow-up to "Freaky Friday"; "Elle," a continuation of the "Legally Blonde" universe; and "Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair," which revives the beloved sitcom family, among many others.

Given that pattern, it's no surprise fans have started wondering whether "Matilda" might get the same treatment three decades after its 1996 release.

Mara Wilson, who played the telekinetic bookworm at the heart of the film, recently weighed in on the idea — and she's given it more thought than you might expect. "People always ask me about doing a Matilda 2. And that could be possible," Wilson said during a panel at Fanboy Expo Knoxville in Tennessee.

The actress said she's genuinely considered how such a project might work, but she pushed back on a theory that frequently comes up in fan discussions.

"One thing that people always say is, 'Oh, maybe it could be Matilda's daughter.' And I have some issues with that, because I think Matilda's powers come from her adversity," she explained.

She elaborated on why she believes Matilda's abilities were never meant to be passed down.

"They come from the bad things that she went through, and the whole point is that she overcame these things. And she found power in educating herself and in making friends with these people who were really lovely," Wilson continued.

"And so I don't think Matilda would raise her daughter to be in a position where she developed those powers to protect herself," she added.

"Matilda," based on Roald Dahl's novel of the same name, centers on a gifted young girl with telekinetic powers who uses her abilities to outwit her neglectful family and rescue her beloved teacher from a tyrannical headmistress.

Beyond the question of a potential heir to Matilda's powers, Wilson raised another sequel dilemma entirely.

"Also, and this is a tricky question, but who would Matilda marry?" the 38-year-old asked. "Who's good enough for Matilda? Matilda's such an awesome character that I can't imagine who she would marry and have kids with, you know?"

The conversation also touched on Wilson's personal relationship with the role that made her famous. She admitted that being constantly linked to the character used to bother her.

"I used to be a little annoyed when people would call me Matilda because I was like, 'No, I'm Mara.' It felt almost a little bit like being called by your sister's name — your much cooler, smarter sister's name. And I was like, oh, no, I'm not as cool as she is," she explained.

Over time, though, the writer and activist said her perspective shifted, and she came to embrace the comparison rather than resist it.

"You know, Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia, she said, 'I feel like me and Princess Leia have kind of merged over the years.' And I sort of feel like that too," Wilson said.

She went on to describe how much of herself she now sees reflected in the character.

"I feel like Matilda has been a character that I looked up to, and Matilda would do things that I do. She would talk about mental health. She would talk about books. She would be working. She would be writing, she would be loving books and doing stuff for public libraries and things like that," she continued.

"And I do all of those things. Those things are very important to me. So Matilda has really taught me a lot of good lessons. And I think I've become a lot like her in my own way."