Ryan Gosling’s New Film Is Already Getting A Sequel
That was fast.
On July 22 Netflix’s highly anticipated action blockbuster The Gray Man was released on the streaming platform after limited showings in theaters across the United States from the week before. Based on the novel by Mark Greaney and directed by Joe and Anthony Russo of Avengers: Endgame fame, The Gray Man is one of Netflix’s most expensive projects with a budget of $200 million. Starring Chris Evans, Ryan Gosling, and Ana de Armas, The Gray Man has been a hit with audiences and a mixed bag with critics. Regardless of the film’s popularity, Netflix seems to believe that the movie has been a success for the streamer.
According to a report by MovieWeb, Netflix has decided to go ahead with a sequel to The Gray Man. The proposed sequel will star Ryan Gosling in a reprisal of his role as Sierra Six, a CIA assassin with no real name or biography, at least none that will ever see the light of day. In The Gray Man, Sierra Six is a fugitive of sorts when he discovers incriminating secrets about the CIA and becomes the target of Lloyd Hansen, played by America’s ass, Chris Evans. Lloyd Hansen is a private sector mercenary and former CIA agent whose psychopathic tendencies make him the right man for the job of killing Sierra Six. Ana de Armas rounds out the cast as Sierra Six’s partner, Dani Miranda.
There is no confirmation yet about whether or not other actors from The Gray Man will appear alongside Ryan Gosling in the sequel. Although with how many deaths occur in the first installment, the sequel will likely consist of a whole new storyline for Sierra Six. According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Gray Man directors Joe and Anthony Russo will be reteaming to direct the sequel. A fully-fledged spin-off film is also in development. The spin-off does not currently have a director attached, but writers from Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese of Deadpool will be writing the script.
News of a sequel to the Ryan Gosling-led The Gray Man may be surprising to some, primarily due to the film’s lackluster critical response. Rotten Tomatoes notes that The Gray Man has a Tomatometer rating of 48% based on 204 critic reviews but an overwhelmingly popular reaction from viewers with a 91% Audience Score. Similarly, Metacritic reports that the movie has a current Metascore of 49 from 55 critic reviews, which signals a mixed or average score from verified critics on the site. By contrast, Metacritic’s User Score is 6.2, showing generally favorable reviews of The Gray Man by 115 users to date.
However, Netflix must see potential in a sequel and a separate spin-off of The Gray Man franchise, especially considering that there are other novels in the series by Mark Greaney to draw from. Ryan Gosling will be busy filming the movie’s sequel, in addition to his ongoing production work on Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig and costarring Margot Robbie. Tying together Gosling’s collaborations to date, Barbie will also costar Chris Evans’ brother Scott Evans in a yet-to-be-named role.
