Michael McDowell was originally slated to write and direct the movie but dropped out do to personal reasons. Instead it was directed by Tony Randel in his first cred as a director. Randel claims the change from a horror film (as the first movie was) to an dark cosmic horror fantasy was meant to differentiate the film from its predecessor. The dark tone of the movie, he says, reflected his own mindset on the world at the time.
Art: Mike Mignola