With Den Of Thieves 3 Confirmed, I Need To Talk About How Part 2 Teased Big Nick's Next Adventure

(Image credit: Lionsgate)

Call all dads, or at least fans of mid-budget action movies – Den of Thieves 3 is happening. A few weeks after Den of Thieves 2: Pantera came onto the scene and took the top spot at the box office early on the 2025 movie schedule, a January trend for Gerard Butler at this point, the world on the street is that we haven’t seen the cigarette-smoking Nick “Big Nick” O’Brien or O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s Donnie Wilson. Exciting news, right? Well, after the way the great buddy action movie teased the next chapter, I am very, very excited.

In January 2025, just days after Den of Thieves 2: Pantera was released on PVOD, IndieWire reported that Lionsgate was actively developing a third installment in the heist movie franchise, with Butler and Jackson, as well as director Christian Gudagest, slated to return. And while nothing has been officially announced about the plot, setting, and any new DOT characters, I have some thoughts about where things could be headed after the Den of Thieves 2 ending.

It’s Not Over Between Big Nick O’Brien And Donnie Wilson

SPOILER WARNING: There are major spoilers for Den of Thieves 2: Pantera below. If you’ve yet to watch the movie, please turn back now (and don’t eat the donut off the ground at a crime scene).

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera

Read CinemaBlend's Den of Thieves 2: Pantera Review

Now that the whole spoiler warning business is out of the way, it’s time to talk about the Den of Thieves 2 ending and how I think it teased the upcoming threequel and possibly more installments in this highly rewatchable crime franchise.

After the big World Diamond Center heist goes down and that awesome car chase through the mountains ends with the Octopus mob outfit helping Nick and Donnie, it looks like things are going to end well for the pair of reluctant enemies-turned-friends. That is until Nick sells out the crew to the Pantera task force, and Donnie is arrested. But that isn’t the only twist, as Donnie (while being transferred to a different prison) is rescued/kidnapped by the mafia and given a role in its operation. Judging by a text Donnie sends to Big Nick in the final moments of the movie, it sounds like the down-on-his-luck and morally ambiguous former LASD deputy was in on it.

The open-ended Den of Thieves 2 final scene could mean a lot of things for what’s next for Big Nick. As we’ve seen in the first two movies, the guy’s life back home is a mess – his wife divorced him, he doesn’t get to see his daughters, he’s been put on leave, there’s a sex tape that’s being used against him as blackmail, etc. – and he might be better suited starting a new life. Whether that means a life of crime or working with the Pantera force (or a similar group), is anyone’s guess. But I don’t see Big Nick going back to the status quo in Los Angeles after this.

Regardless of what happens in Den of Thieves 3 (please use the Den of Thi3ves titled, Lionsgate), I’ll be there yet again to see what will probably be one of Gerard Butler’s best movies. I just hope we don’t have to wait so long this time.

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Philip grew up in Louisiana (not New Orleans) before moving to St. Louis after graduating from Louisiana State University-Shreveport. When he's not writing about movies or television, Philip can be found being chased by his three kids, telling his dogs to stop barking at the mailman, or chatting about professional wrestling to his wife. Writing gigs with school newspapers, multiple daily newspapers, and other varied job experiences led him to this point where he actually gets to write about movies, shows, wrestling, and documentaries (which is a huge win in his eyes). If the stars properly align, he will talk about For Love Of The Game being the best baseball movie of all time.