Den of Thievesis getting a sequel. That’s proper: The heist film from 2018 starring Gerard Butler because the hard-drinking, morally doubtful Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division detective “Huge Nick” O’Brien has spawned a franchise. If something about The Ringeror the individuals who work at The Ringer, you’ll perceive how extremely essential that is to us. This may as properly be the Tremendous Bowl.
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, just isn’t, as I mistakenly thought once I learn the title too quick, about robbers taking down a sequence of bakery cafés. It additionally has nothing to do with the steel band. The motion flick, which hits theaters on January 10, is called for one thing related to its plot. I’ll let writer-director Christian Gudegast clarify: “It comes very particularly from the title of the duty pressure that was tasked with looking down the thieves answerable for a collection of heists all through Europe that had been perpetuated by a bunch often called the Pink Panthers, or Panther mafia, who’re largely from the Balkan area of Japanese Europe.” In Spanish, you see, “pantera” means “panther.” The multinational group that got down to cease the gang, Gudegast provides, “was known as Process Drive Pantera.”
All this to say: Den of Thieves 2is about a world jewel heist. O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s character, Donnie Wilson, the key mastermind of the primary installment, is a part of a squad that schemes to knock over the World Diamond Middle. (Hell yeah, brother.) Besides this time, it appears as if Huge Nick is switching groups and becoming a member of the prison aspect. (HELL YEAH, BROTHER.)
We miraculously obtained our palms on the primary trailer for Pantera this week. To us, this teaser is as treasured as $30 million in outdated, unfit payments. And for that purpose, we’re bestowing upon it the editorial equal of the Criterion remedy: an oral historical past.
Tucker Tooley (producer): Look, we’re blessed to have each our friendship and our relationship with Gerry. He’s considered one of only some film stars on the market who get films green-lit. And he’s busy as a result of he might be and since he loves it, and so that you’ve obtained to get in line and wait. After which COVID on high of all of it.
Christian Gudegast (writer-director):I used to be going to do that film known as Aircraftwith Gerry, after which he mentioned, “OK, let’s do Aircraft,however we’ll do Denproper after.” I’m like, “Nicely, then I can’t do Aircraft.” So then I didn’t do Aircraftas a result of we’re going to do Den. However then he ended up doing Kandaharafter. And the subsequent factor , it’s like three years later. That’s simply the best way it goes.
Tooley:Comparatively talking, sure—it took rather a lot longer than we needed to, however in comparison with a number of the films that I’ve achieved, even the primary Den, which took 10 years, this was a much less tumultuous path.
Alan Siegel (producer):We’ve had six years of anticipation, and now we’re delivering one thing that not solely lives as much as the primary movie, but additionally surprises them in methods they didn’t count on. It’s a triumphant return and a thrill to be again on this world.
(Editor’s observe: This Alan Siegel is totally different than the Alan Siegel who wrote this text. This Alan Siegel isGerard Butler’s supervisor and producing companion. The opposite Alan Siegel can not get your screenplay green-lit.)
Gudegast:For certain, we did [envision a sequel] from the very starting. Simply because within the analysis for the very first one, which was a very long time in the past now, but additionally this one, they’re all primarily based on actual heists. And whereas researching—actually deep, deep diving on the world of heists and financial institution robbers and thieves world wide—we uncovered every kind of wonderful heists.
And it’s all within the element. The main points are superb and interesting, how they really do it and why they do it and the sorts of those who do it. For financial institution robbers, it’s by no means in regards to the cash in any respect. I do know it sounds ridiculous, nevertheless it actually isn’t. For a number of the individuals they carry alongside the best way, it’s. They lengthy for construction in life, and it offers them a purpose for being. It offers them a function and a objective. And so they be sure it’s exhausting, so it takes time. It’s like getting a black belt in a martial artwork. It takes endlessly. The highest guys go for these heists that appear unattainable and insane, and so they pull them off.
Tooley:It’s humorous, as a result of once we screened the film, individuals could be like, “Yeah, that’s the place you deserted actuality and went to fiction.” We had been like, “No. Truly, by no means. To the element, it’s what occurred.”
Gudegast:This one which’s in Den 2 was primarily based on what was known as the flawless heist. The World Diamond Centre in Europe. It was simply so meticulously achieved. And we had on our set with us, in script writing and in taking pictures, each the blokes on the prison aspect that had been concerned within the thievery and on the regulation enforcement aspect. So the lead investigator was there the entire time with us. So what you will note within the film is an exceptionally correct portrayal of the way it was truly achieved.
(Editor’s observe: The actual World Diamond Centre is spelled the European approach.)
Chris Ryan (Den of Thieves correspondent,The Ringer):I’d like to be a part of a rebrand marketing campaign for the World Diamond Centre as a result of I believe they’re placing a little bit of a goal on their backs.
Tooley:The primary visible impression of your film is extremely essential. An viewers has been socialized to get 20 items of content material forward of a film, together with outside promoting and a poster. It was perhaps a teaser, a trailer, and that’s it, after which your TV spots. Now, it’s much more than that.
Gudegast:I really like trailers. Typically trailers had been the very best a part of going to the films, what I imply? However for me, those that left the largest impressions on me had been, for instance, The Shining. Biggest trailer ever. The elevator door, and the blood begins pouring out in slo-mo, and it splashes all of the furnishings. That’s it. For me, those that inform the entire story all the best way, these are much less attention-grabbing. I like trailers that evoke a temper and a sense. If I believe it feels cool, I don’t give a rat’s ass what it’s about.
Tooley:Everybody’s conscious of trailer moments.
Gudegast:You would say it when you’re taking pictures. We’ll be like, “trailer second” after a take of some form, some shot, or the best way someone delivered one thing, or a glance or no matter. It offers somewhat enhance to the day. “Nicely, that was fairly badass.”
What are theDen of Thieves 2: Pantera trailer’s trailer moments? I’m going with Huge Nick pointing a gun at Donnie and saying, “You’re not a killer. I’m.” And in addition Donnie saying, with some astonishment, “And the cop goes gangster.”
Gudegast:All of it tracks with [Nick’s] persona. That’s what each Den 1and actually Den 2explores. The road between cop and prison, it’s nearly generally invisible. They’re the identical kind of dude. Life circumstances led them to 1 or the opposite. They’re very, very comparable sorts of human beings. And that’s what’s attention-grabbing. Consider any enterprise: Hollywood, actual property, docs, legal professionals. You all know one another. It’s the identical factor with cops and criminals. One solely exists with out the opposite.
Ryan:To be sincere, this featured 100% much less “Pantera” than I used to be anticipating. Past that, I’m simply so proud that America’s contribution to the transatlantic cultural alternate now features a Huge Nick chapter.
Gudegast:The thought is to consistently have motion with the franchise, which we’re going to do with [Den of Thieves] 3. We’re going to go to a different world.
Interviews have been edited and condensed for readability.
