Heat 2 is moving forward!
A long awaited sequel to the 1995 film is reportedly getting made after all, and it’s found a new home at Amazon MGM Studios’ United Artists, according to a new report – and plenty of exciting names are being floated around.
Keep reading to find out more…
Michael Mann is set to film a sequel to the crime drama, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Scott Stuber, per THR.
Leonardo DiCaprio is reportedly “circling” the project, but other names have been tossed around including Bradley Cooper, Austin Butler, and Adam Driver.
In fact, Adam was said to be attached to the project in a report from two years ago.
The original movie starred Al Pacino as Los Angeles cop Vincent Hanna who is obsessed with tracking down career criminal Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) before his last heist.
Michael Mann and co-writer Meg Gardiner released the crime novel Heat 2 in 2022, which was a hit.
Here’s a synopsis: “Acting as both a prequel and a sequel, the sprawling Heat 2 story is set in several timelines. One follows a younger McCauley and his crew pulling off daring heists and living the high life. Another tells of what happened to Shihirlis, the lovelorn thief played by Val Kilmer in the 1995 movie, in the aftermath of the first movie’s climactic robbery, and his multi-year quest to reunite with his former girlfriend (who was played by Ashley Judd in the original). One part of the book is set in a lawless South American drug zone. And there is also an overarching bad guy more brutal than anything seen in the first movie, a murderer and rapist named Otis Wardell.”
The film was originally budgeted at a whopping reported $230 million, then down to $170 million. Warner Bros., who originally had the project, was looking to make it for $135 to $140 million, and was willing to go to $150 million if there was a third movie commitment, per THR.
The director reportedly has been meeting with A-listers for “months.”
“Everyone you can think of has met on this,” THR‘s source explained. Stay tuned as we wait for casting details!