It’s taken eight years, but the Sicario trio are reuniting for a new mission. The long-awaited sequel to 2018’s Sicario: Day of the Soldado has been greenlit, with original stars Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, and Josh Brolin back on the call sheet — though the same cannot be said for its key creative force.
As Deadline reports, series creator Taylor Sheridan, who also wrote the first two films, won’t pen the script this time. Instead, Steven Knight of Peaky Blinders fame has been attached as scribe, while Padriac McKinley (The Weight) is directing. No word on story details yet, but the threequel is expected to cap off the world and characters introduced in 2015, coming after a delay caused by the 2023 Hollywood writers’ strike. Reportedly, the plan is to begin filming at the start of next year.
Blunt’s return is particularly noteworthy, as the actor was absent from the sophomore film. Helmed by Denis Villeneuve, known for Dune and Blade Runner 2049, Sicario follows principled FBI special agent Kate Macer (Blunt), who is enlisted by a government task force to bring down the leader of a powerful and brutal Mexican drug cartel with the aid of CIA agent Matt Graver (Brolin) and former Mexican prosecutor turned assassin Alejandro Gillick (del Toro).
The latter two reprised their roles in Day of the Soldado, which was directed by Stefano Sollima and told the story of human trafficking at the US-Mexico border and a covert effort by the United States government to incite increased conflict among the cartels. It was less well-received both commercially and critically, grossing US$75.8 million against a budget of US$35 to US$45 million.
Sicario 3 is the latest project on Knight’s plate, following his scriptwriting duties for the next James Bond film, to be directed by Villeneuve. The show maker was previously tapped to pen the screenplay for Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s upcoming Star Wars feature, but announced his departure in October 2024.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
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Ting Wei
