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As mentioned on Wikipedia, in some later editions of The Princess Bride, the first chapter of Buttercup's Baby, which Goldman said was a sequel, appears at the end. A sequel was never realized, and one might argue that he was never serious about Buttercup's Baby, though my impression from an interview (see also Wikipedia link) was that he seriously did want to write a sequel.

  1. Is there any evidence that he wrote more of Buttercup's Baby than 1 chapter?

  2. All of Goldman's "real-world" stories about The Princess Bride (e.g., things about Morgenstern) are made up. Is there any evidence that Chapter 1 of Buttercup's Baby was really intended to be the beginning of the sequel he wanted to write?

Note: I read the 25th anniversary edition, but do not have the 30th, which according to Wikipedia has hints about a sequel plot, so I do not know what is in there, or if that was serious or just fantasy.

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  • I got the impression that this was an elaborate joke, on par with the frame story. He may well have wanted to write a sequel (it was certainly popular, if nothing else), but I suspect he realizes that it's unlikely to work. So he wrote a chapter, as a joke but possibly looking to see if he got inspired. When he wasn't, he published the gag, and that's the end of the story. None of what I just said is substantiated; it's just the impression I got.
    – Joshua Engel
    Oct 18, 2017 at 16:11
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    Buttercup's Baby wasn't written, but it was certainly filmed. The title did change in development: imdb.com/title/tt0451279
    – Lauren-Clear-Monica-Ipsum
    Oct 19, 2017 at 10:09

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  1. No. Nothing else has ever been officially published regarding the sequel.

  2. Yes. In a 2007 interview with Pictures Magazine, Goldman says he would love to write a sequel, but has been unable to do so to his satisfaction:

I desperately want to write it, and I sit there and nothing happens and I get pissed at myself. I got lucky with The Princess Bride the first time, and I'd love to get lucky again

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  • Sorry if my question was unclear. For 1, I meant did he write more chapter drafts/storyboards (not necessarily published). For 2, I agree he really wanted to write a sequel, but I meant to ask whether the published Chapter 1 of Buttercup's Baby was really meant to be the beginning of a sequel, or whether that was part of a frame joke about a sequel, as @JoshuaEngel seems to think. (E.g., maybe he had already given up on a sequel by the time that was published.)
    – Kimball
    Oct 19, 2017 at 13:32
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    My impression is that tou really should take everything that Goldman says about The Princess Pride with a grain of salt.
    – Peter Shor
    Oct 19, 2017 at 21:04

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