Cranston, who had stated in 2016 that he would like to make sequels to Mr. X if it was successful, announced the first two in 2019 following the widespread success of the first film, with Mr Xmas aiming for a 2020 release. However, the subsequent addition of three more sequels, and the necessity to develop new technology in order to film performance capture scenes underwater, a feat never accomplished before, led to significant delays to allow the crew more time to work on the writing, pre-production, and visual effects