One of the most anticipated action-thriller sequels of all time has officially settled on its new cast. Following the classic 1995 movie directed by Michael Mann and starring Al Pacino, Val Kilmer, and Robert De Niro, the new film will star Leonardo DiCaprio, Stephen Graham, Christian Bale, and Adam Driver. The follow-up to Mann’s film was first published as a novel in 2022. Ever since, people have been increasingly hungry for details about the movie adaptation.
Heat 2 is set to begin filming in November and continue for several months, which means a release is likely in late 2027 or early 2028. While we all hang on to individual details as they come out, De Niro has noted that he would love to see Graham play his character Neil McCauley. We know that the movie is a sequel of sorts that includes many flashbacks to events that occur before the original 1995 movie. Fortunately for us, Graham appeared on the Heart Breakfast radio show in the UK to share details about the story and cast.
“So, in the sequel, if you remember the film, the last one that survived was Val Kilmer,” says Graham, “Leonardo DiCaprio is playing [the] Val Kilmer[character] and Christian Bale is playing the Al Pacino character.” Graham will be playing the De Niro role in flashbacks, adding, “Yeah. It’s mental!” It’s difficult to imagine the intimidation of stepping into a character played and perfected by a luminary star like Robert De Niro. Fortunately, Graham has the legend’s blessing in his back pocket if he needs any reassurance.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” continued Graham, “Fear and excitement live in the same place. There is a little bit of fear, which is healthy.” The rest of the cast so far includes Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Jason Clarke, and Odessa Young. Starting this weekend, the actors will be spending five weeks in Los Angeles for training prior to filming.
We can expect this to be a big film, as Mann mused back in 2022, “Is it a modest movie? No. Is it a very expensive series? No. It’s going to be one large movie.” Mann’s previous film three years ago, Ferrari, starred Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari and has critics and audiences in agreement at 73% approval on Rotten Tomatoes. We can certainly bank that there are sky-high hopes for Heat 2. Fortunately, the potential of this sequel aligns with our expectations.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
