The movie's theatrical release was limited because its distributors felt it would be inappropriate give it widespread distribution in the wake of the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado, which led to increased scrutiny of violence in the media. Since being released on DVD however, "Boondock" has found a large and loyal following of fans who can quote every line of the film and who have been after Duffy for years to make a sequel. Their efforts were successful and the eagerly awaited follow-up, "The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day," is set to open Oct. 30.

"It happened the way it happened and, frankly, I wouldn't change it if I could," Duffy recently told the Irish Echo about the fate of the first "Boondock." "Very few writer-directors get in that little [cult classic] club and now I'm a member. But while it was happening, it was . . . kind of depressing. But, now that it's happened, it's success in a whole different way."

Both "Boondock Saints" films follow justice-seeking, Irish-American brothers Connor and Murphy MacManus (played by Sean Patrick Flannery and Norman Reedus) as they take down Russian mobsters and other assorted bad guys in South Boston after receiving what they believe to be a message from God. Scottish comedian Billy Connolly plays their hit-man dad, Noah "Il Duce" MacManus, while Clifton Collins Jr. joins the cast this time around as the boys' sidekick, Romeo, and Julie Benz plays Eunice, the cop investigating the crimes the MacManus family perpetrates. The sequel, which retains the energy and darkly comic spirit of the original, picks up as the brothers -- who wear Rosary beads and say prayers in Latin when they kill people -- leave Ireland where they have been hiding out and head back to Boston to finish some business.

"The fans got it made -- they're what made the first film successful and they got the second one made," Duffy said. "What they noticed in the movie business was that 'Boondock's' numbers every year kept getting bigger and bigger, and the fan base kept growing and growing . It's supposed to happen the other way. You go out and exploit something and you have something that starts to wane after three to six months on the shelves . . . 'Boondock' was exactly the opposite. Because of the Columbine incident, we were basically blacklisted from U.S. theaters."

So, what was it like getting the gang together again a decade later for a sequel?

"We never really were apart," Duffy replied. "We were talking any way and they would always inquire as to how [the script for the follow-up] was coming. So once the screenplay got done . . . it was a matter of a phone call."

"It was a little déjà-vuey at first," Reedus said of reprising his role. "But it was easy. We just jumped back in and Troy is really generous as a director."

"This is the most fun I've ever had making a movie and the second funnest movie I ever made was part one . . . and third place is down there by a comfortable margin," Flannery said with a laugh.

Flannery and Reedus are well-respected actors who have worked regularly for years, but they said they are most frequently and enthusiastically approached by fans who love their portrayal of the MacManus brothers.

"Sean went to Comic-Con [in New York] and one guy had the whole prayer [from 'Boondock'] tattooed on his back in Klingon," Reedus recalled, noting fans also lined up earlier this year to watch the trailer for the sequel at Comic-Con in San Diego.

"(The reaction from the crowd) was deafening. It was rock star day," he added.

"I felt like Mick Jagger," Flannery admitted with a grin.

Duffy said he knew early on one of the keys to the films' success would be helping his stars nail the Boston Irish accent, which has proven treacherous to many other actors in the past.

"Norman had a dialect coach. Sean it was just natural. Flannery is an Irish name -- he's got some lineage going on there. Billy, he's a Scotsman, but he grew up . . . I always make this joke with them, 'Scottish, Irish, it's all the same thing.' Ticks them off more than anything."

And when there's a bad Boston accent in a movie, "Bostonians clock it," he said. "[To them] it's like fingernails on a chalkboard."