Is The Gray Man 2 With Ryan Gosling Still Happening Or Has The Sequel Gone Underground?
When it was released in 2022, The Russo Bros.' spy thriller "The Gray Man," based on the 2009 novel by Mark Greaney, boasted the largest budget of any Netflix film to date, costing the studio about $200 million. "The Gray Man" was a flippant action flick that starred Ryan Gosling as a skilled CIA assassin nicknamed Sierra Six, after the ultra-secret Sierra program that trained him. Sierra Six, on an early mission, learns from the now-independent Sierra Four (Callan Mulvey) that there may be some active corruption or malfeasance in the Sierra program, and goes rogue, searching for the truth. Six's boss Fitzroy (Billy Bob Thornton) hires the kooky, ultra-violent Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans) to track him down. Ana De Armas also appears as a CIA agent named Dani Miranda.
"The Gray Man" was reviewed generally poorly, fetching a mere 45% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film, for all its expensive bombast and dazzling star power, ultimately emerges as generic and perfunctory, feeling like the result of A.I. amalgamations and executive decisions rather than any kind of creative spark. The Russos gained an impressive reputation helming some of the most expensive and successful superhero films of all time, but outside of Marvel's purview, have proven to be shallow studio tools.
Regardless, "The Gray Man" was touted as one of the most-watched Netflix debuts, coming in at the fifth-highest in the service's history. It was claimed to be (by Netflix themselves) the most-watched Netflix film in 84 countries, having racked up 253 million viewing hours in toto. Since "The Gray Man" is 129 minutes, that would translate to 117.6 million views all the way through.
A sequel was announced on the film's successful debut weekend. Where are we on that?
Why hasn't The Gray Man 2 happened yet?
The Russos didn't just want a sequel to "The Gray Man." They wanted a whole cinematic universe. One can understand their impulse, given the success they had with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. /Film reported in July of 2022 that the Russos wanted to make a spin-off movie about a supporting player in "The Gray Man" named Avik San, a.k.a. the Lone Wolf, the character played by Tamil cinema superstar Dhanush. They also declared an interest in making further sequels with the Sierra Six character, knowing that he appeared in multiple Greaney novels. The Russos were keen to build out a massive, slick, spy universe.
Despite an enthused interest, however, no single sequel has gone into development. It seems the Russos were keen to build out a universe, but hadn't put together what the next practical step was going to be. Would there be a "Gray Man 2" first or a Lone Wolf film first? How was this expanded universe supposed to ... expand? The filmmakers certainly seem to wish for more "Gray Man" movies but, well, if wishes were horses, etc. It's entirely possible that any perceived delays on "Gray Man 2" are because the filmmakers are involved in a massive brainstorming phase.
Make no mistake, though. Pen is being put to paper as we speak.
Naturally, deals still need to be made. Netflix's Scott Stuber announced, via ComicBook.com, that Netflix would re-team with the Russos' studio AGBO:
"With 'The Gray Man,' the Russos delivered an edge-of-your-seat spectacle that audiences around the world are loving. We're excited to continue to partner with them and the team at AGBO as they build out 'The Gray Man' universe."
The Russos and Netflix have every intention of making a sequel happen.
Everything the filmmakers have said about The Gray Man 2
In a 2022 press event in Mumbai, printed in Variety, the Russos noted that "The Gray Man," based on a multi-volume book series, has plenty of additional creative ground to explore. Too much, one might say, as they also want to take the book series in a new direction. To quote Joe Russo:
"It's based on a book series, so there is the opportunity to expand this into future movies. We love to keep going with the world because we love all the characters. But we need the audience to tell us whether they want to see more of the story or not. If we do continue forward with the story, I can guarantee you that Dhanush's character will be part of that world moving forward."
In an interview with Empire from around the same time, Joe Russo noted again that he wanted to "build out" his "Gray Man" universe into a scattered super-narrative about multiple spy characters operating independently and simultaneously. He admitted, too, that he and his brother may have bitten off more than they could chew, saying:
"We never want to jinx it, but we're already thinking through where it goes from here. We like to build out worlds, and we would rather gamble on the upside and put the energy and time in to build out that universe prior to the release, so that the ideas are more germane and organic. That's how you build out a more complex mosaic narrative. [...] We're intimately involved in all of it. [...] The focus is to make 'Gray Man 2'. Our appetite is voracious and the intention is always to do more than we can."
How gray can we get? So gray!
Who will the stars of The Gray Man 2 be?
Stars Chris Evans, Ana De Armas, and Billy Bob Thornton, have said nothing about a "Gray Man" sequel, although Gosling is confirmed to return and Dhanush, commenting below, is interested. The Russos recently admitted in an interview with Collider that "Gray Man" screenwriters Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus were indeed working on a script for "The Gray Man 2," so there is some forward movement. And it seems that Dhanush would happily return, even if the other "Gray" actors aren't attached yet.
At the same Mumbai press event noted in the previous slide, Dhanush announced that he would be game to return. He liked working with Ryan Gosling and would be happy to appear in another high-profile American feature. He said:
"It will be great to work with Ryan again, he's a fantastic human being. He is very kind, and we have amazing mutual respect for each other. And it will be really great to work with him. Regardless [of] whether we're fighting or not fighting with each other."
Gosling will return as the title character. Evans clearly had a wonderful time playing the film's bad guy, but given what the film might be about, he may possibly not return. Or he will. Villains return in spy stories all the time. De Armas and Evans have appeared together in multiple films (including "Knives Out" and "Ghosted"), so if Evans is back, De Armas will likely also return out of perceived camaraderie.
What will The Gray Man 2 be about?
On the website What's On Netflix, the Russos commented that "The Gray Man 2" would be based on the second book in Greaney's Sierra Six series, saying:
"The sequel will be inspired by the Mark Greaney novel. Translating from one medium to another often requires interpretation, but we have an incredible amount of source material from an amazing offer. We'll draw on that for the sequel."
The second book in the series is called "On Target," and it was published in 2010. The story involved Sierra Six being approached by an old Russian compatriot to assassinate the Sudanese President Abboud, a mastermind of the real-life Darfur genocide. Naturally, the CIA is on Sierra's tail. One can expect a lot of action, a lot of expensive fights, and the usual amount of globe-trotting. The Russos may also make extensive use of drone-mounted cameras, a technique they employed ... a lot ... in "The Gray Man."
One might hope that the new film(s) build out the universe in a way that will add to its texture and personality, and not just give audiences an expensive, mildly diverting trifle.
The Russos are working on a Netflix film called "The Electric State," set for release sometime in 2024, so production on "The Gray Man 2" will likely not begin for a moment. There is also a potential tertiary "Gray Man" spinoff, according to a press release, being written by Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese, which is "set to explore a different element of 'The Gray Man' universe." That's all that is currently known.