It seems that the threequel Now you see me 3 is back on track at Lionsgate. THR reports that Ruben Fleischer (venom, not mapped) is now on board to direct the long-running sequel. The screenplay for the third part of the film series comes from Seth Grahame-Smith who writes a new concept (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) under Fleischer’s supervision. An earlier draft of the script was written by Eric Warren Singer (Top Gun: Maverick).
“There are three things in this world that I absolutely adore… Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, and magic,” Fleischer, who also helmed Eisenberg and Harrelson in two Zombieland movies, said about directing Now you see me 3. “To have the opportunity to work with these two talented actors, as well as the rest of the incredible cast of the Now you see me movies is a dream come true. I’m a lifelong fan of heist movies – I love to get sucked into the twists and turns and mystery where nothing is as it seems. And that’s even more true if the thieves are magicians – the possibilities are endless. Eric was able to unlock a fresh and exciting road to a new movie and fun new characters, so I’m excited to dig even further.”
Lionsgate Motion Picture Group President Nathan Kahane is also quoted as saying, “Ruben has proven time and again that he has a special talent for character-driven blockbuster entertainment. He creates great excitement while ultimately keeping the focus on the characters that the audience cares about. We feel like we’ve put together a dream team to get this movie off the ground. For everyone we have kept in suspense, the wait is almost over.”
Now You See Me 3 Has Been In Development Hell For Years
Released in 2013, the original Now you see me was directed by Louis Leterrier and written by Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin and Edward Ricourt. The cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Melanie Laurent, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman. The film follows an FBI agent and an Interpol detective who team up to take on a team of magicians who commit major heists during their performances.
Since the film was a huge success at the box office, it got an official sequel. Now you see me 2 was directed by Jon M. Chu, although Solomon returned to write the script based on a story he co-created with Peter Chiarelli. In the sequel, the four horsemen are recruited by a criminal mastermind to steal a data chip. Also starring Daniel Radcliffe, Lizzy Caplan, Jay Chou and Sanaa Lathan, the sequel was also a blockbuster when it hit theaters in 2016.
scrape up Now you see me 3 was already in the making Now you see me 2 was even released, but developing the threequel took some time. At one point, a planned version of the sequel was in development with Caplan on board to return as a new character alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, though that version of the project has died out. Eric Warren Singer was also on board to write the script before bringing in Seth Grahame-Smith.
Now you see me 3 does not have a premiere date at this time.