Victoria Mahoney will direct The Old Guard 2 for Netflix and Skydance. And it seems she’s the only new person on the project as the original cast: Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Veronica Ngo and Chiwetel Ejiofor are returning to reprise their roles in the sequel.
Gina Prince-Bythewood directed the first film, but thanks to the success of the first film, she’s quite busy working on several projects including Sony’s “The Woman King” starring Viola Davis and Thuso Mdebu.
“I love ‘The Old Guard’ and the story and characters I was honored to put into the world,” said Prince-Bythewood. “It was exciting to disrupt the genre. I have decided not to direct the sequel, but will stay on as a producer. I leave our franchise in good hands as my girl Vic Mahoney takes on this next chapter.”
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Prince-Bythewood was pleased to pass the reins to Mahoney, who recently became the first woman and first Black woman to direct a Star Wars film when she served as a second unit director on the J.J. Abrams-directed “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”
“Genuinely blown backwards by the collective levels of talent, skill and savvy that went into carving ‘The Old Guard,’ Mahoney said in a statement. “I must’ve watched it over a hundred times, and as such, cannot communicate the true measure of my excitement — being invited on The Old Guard journey alongside ferocious badasses. Ever eager to continue pushing the genre for action-loving audiences. Warmly tipping my hat to the world Gina, Charlize, Rucka, Fernández, Skydance, Netflix, Marc Evans Productions, Denver & Delilah Films and the entire Team daringly put forward.”
The Old Guard is based on Greg Rucka and Leandro Fernández’s graphic novel series. The original pic followed a covert team of immortal mercenaries who are suddenly exposed and must now fight to keep their identity a secret just as an unexpected new member is discovered. The original is one of Netflix’s most popular films to date and was seen by 78M households in its first four weeks.
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The film premiered on Netflix in July 2020 and, by the streaming service’s vague metrics, appears to have been a hit, garnering 78 million views in its first four weeks.
Rucka will write the sequel and executive produce the project. David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Don Granger are producing the sequel for Skydance. Theron, Beth Kono and AJ Dix producing for Denver and Delilah and Marc Evans producing for Marc Evans Productions. Prince-Bythewood will also remain as producer.