Major spoilers from Hitman: Agent 47 and the ending will be discussed, so proceed at your own risk.
It’s seems pretty clear from chatting with producer Adrian Askarieh that the plan for Hitman: Agent 47 was for it to become a larger franchise. At the time Paul Walker was cast in the title role, large units of the video game series were being sold both domestically and internationally, and Walker was seeing massive success with Fast and Furious 6. As the film sits now — with a lead cast of Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware, and Zachary Quinto, as well as poor reviews from critics — it’s unclear where this movie may or may not go. That said, Askarieh says there’s a plan in place should ticket sales warrant a sequel.
We spoke to the producer, who worked on both Agent 47 and the 2007 Hitman with Timothy Olyphant, in New York for a press junket. When discussing sequel possibilities for this film, he said in part,
…as we move forward, if we’re lucky enough to make another Hitman movie, I would say we’re gonna look very closely in taking one of the key stories from the games and generally, not specifically, adapt it the same way Marvel does and now Warners seems to be doing.
This "general" adaptation that he refers to stems from an earlier response he gave to the relationship between comic book movies and video game adaptations. He said the latter should take queues from the former; Marvel and DC are "adapting generally key and iconic storylines." Askarieh specifically cited Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which pulled elements from the comic book story arc of the same name, but had a surprise waiting in the wings, which seemed to use plot points from the Secret Warriors story. This is how the filmmakers approached Hitman, said Askarieh.
So with that in mind, where will the Hitman: Agent 47 sequel take us, should the studio green light another? This is where we get into massive spoiler territory — the end of the film sees both Agent 47 (Friend) and Katia van Dees, an original character made for the film played by Ware, confronted on a rooftop by Agent 48, another clone from the Agent Program. Elsewhere, the mid-credits scene shows that Quinto’s John Smith, thought to have been electrocuted to death, is still alive. Furthermore, he’s sporting blonde hair, which video game fans will know refers to a classic villain of the universe called The Albino.
When I asked Quinto about whether he is contractually obligated to return for more Hitman movies, he said he thinks it’s "always premature to talk about sequels before a movie comes out." Though, he did say he knew about his character’s trajectory from the very beginning. Askarieh was a bit more forthcoming, describing the character as Hitman’s Joker. As a product of a rival Agent Program, he constantly needs to prove to himself that he's better than Agent 47. Askrarieh said:
He’s a complete anarchist, he has no allegiance. He just wants to destroy 47.
The mid-credits scene and the film's ending perfectly set up a general direction for a sequel, should the film move forward. Though, perhaps there's a Winter Soldier-esque twist under the surface. A sequel has not been announced, and Hitman: Agent 47 debuted in the fourth spot at the box office during its opening weekend, which is not a good sign. However, we didn't think we'd be getting another Hitman movie after the 2007 film, and look where we are now.
