Despite big plans for the action universe being teased ahead of the first movie’s release, Ryan Gosling‘s Netflix action franchise is still only slowly trucking along. While he remains one of the most prestige A-list actors currently working, Gosling has also tried his hand at a variety of projects with potential franchise expansions, including Shane Black’s The Nice Guys, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and David Leitch’s acclaimed Fall Guy reboot.
Netflix has similarly been looking to find franchises for itself in the action sphere as they’ve increased their output involving high-profile talent like Gosling. Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds and Gal Gadot’s Red Notice is intended to be comprised of a full trilogy of films, while the Russo brothers also have the Chris Hemsworth-led Extraction franchise, which recently announced a TV spinoff is in the works led by Omar Sy, all while a third movie featuring Hemsworth’s return is still in development. There have been a few, however, whose franchise intentions have either stalled or been shelved entirely since their debuts.
The Gray Man 2 Has A Few Hurdles To Overcome
Anthony Russo Assures There’s “Still Interest” In The Sequel
One such blockbuster venture that paired Gosling and Netflix was that of 2022’s The Gray Man, helmed by the Russos and based on Mark Greaney’s book of the same name about a CIA assassin who goes on the run as he’s hunted down by a ruthless ex-CIA agent. With a $200 million production budget, the movie ended up being a big gamble for the streamer, sitting as one of their most expensive productions to date, though thanks to its massive viewership, both a spinoff and The Gray Man 2 were announced right after its release.
Now, during a recent interview with The Playlist to discuss the upcoming release of The Electric State, Joe and Anthony Russo were asked for an update on The Gray Man 2 and the franchise’s future outside of the sequel. Though very brief, the latter did confirm there is “still interest” in producing more in the action universe at Netflix, though indicated the biggest hurdle they’re currently facing is getting everyone’s schedules aligned. Check out what Anthony Russo said below:
There’s still interest, yeah. There’s interest, [it’s] just the availability issues between Joe and I and Mr. Gosling and et cetera.
Our Take On Russo’s Gray Man Franchise Update
The Brothers May Need To Pass The Reins Off To Someone Else
Given how successful the first movie was in its viewership, in spite of its mixed critical reception, it certainly doesn’t seem like Netflix would want to give up on the future Gray Man plans. This is all the more likely after the streamer reportedly cancelled the plans for Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead franchise to continue, thus saving them roughly another $100 million to produce it, while Rebel Moon‘s unclear future also saves them upwards of $150 million after the first two cost a combined $166 million to produce.
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That being said, even if Netflix has continued interest in it, it seems like Gosling and the Russos’ busy schedule will continue to be the biggest hurdle for The Gray Man 2 and beyond. The former has a number of projects he’s attached to star in, including Shawn Levy’s standalone Star Wars movie, while the Russos are currently working on their latest Marvel Cinematic Universe ventures in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars, which are expected to film sometime this year. If Netflix wants to get the sequel and spinoff off the ground sooner, they may need to have someone else take up the reins.
Source: The Playlist