Netflix’s hefty investment in the star-studded action thriller The Gray Man appears to have paid off, and now the streaming service is ready to bring further stories based on Mark Greaney’s bestselling book series to life. Netflix has confirmed they’re moving forward on a The Gray Man sequel as well as a spin-off film.
Ryan Gosling will return to star in the sequel, and directors Joe Russo and Anthony Russo are also on board to helm the sequel. Stephen McFeely, co-writer of the first film, is adapting Greaney’s book. The Russos, AGBO’s Mike Larocca, and Roth Kirschenbaum Films’ Joe Roth and Jeffrey Kirschenbaum are producing.
Viewers made The Gray Man the most-watched movie on Netflix in 92 countries over its first weekend. Audiences rated it 91% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics weren’t quite so generous, with the film earning a rotten rating. Only 48% of the submitted reviews rated it fresh.
Netflix’s announcement didn’t reveal who will star in the spinoff film or provide a plot description. The streaming service did say Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese (Deadpool, Zombieland) are writing it and that it will “explore a different element of The Gray Man universe.”
“The audience reaction to The Gray Man has been nothing short of phenomenal. We are so appreciative of the enthusiasm that fans across the world have had for this film. With so many amazing characters in the movie, we had always intended for the Gray Man to be part of an expanded universe, and we are thrilled that Netflix is announcing a sequel with Ryan, as well as a second script that we’re excited to talk about soon,” stated Joe and Anthony Russo.
The Plot: The Gray Man is CIA operative Court Gentry (Gosling), aka, Sierra Six. Plucked from a federal penitentiary and recruited by his handler, Donald Fitzroy (Billy Bob Thornton), Gentry was once a highly-skilled, Agency-sanctioned merchant of death. But now the tables have turned and Six is the target, hunted across the globe by Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans), a former cohort at the CIA, who will stop at nothing to take him out. Agent Dani Miranda (Ana de Armas) has his back. He’ll need it.
