Lionsgate has officially greenlit Rian Johnson’s follow-up to Knives Out. The director's 2019 follow-up to Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a whodunnit about an eccentric family put under investigation after the death of their patriarch, wealthy mystery novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), raises the suspicions of a famed private investigator played by Daniel Craig.
Earlier in January, Rian Johnson told THR that he was working on a sequel to Knives Out centered around Benoit Blanc. Rian Johnson has since confirmed as much since the recent announcement that the sequel was a go. The director recently went on SiriusXM and said they're planning a whole new cast, whole new location, whole new mystery for the Knives Out sequel.
With the exception of the aforementioned details, very little is known regarding the plot of Knives Out 2, even its official title, and perhaps it is best to remain a mystery for the time being.While we eagerly await more updates on this project, we could not help but conjure a few predictions and, more honestly, wishes for what the unpredictable Rian Johnson may bring to the table next.
A Bigger Role For Frequent Rian Johnson Collaborator Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Since he starred as the tortured protagonist of Rian Johnson’s 2005 feature-length debut, the high school-set noir Brick, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has essentially become the Leonardo DiCaprio to the director’s Martin Scorsese. Johnson has given the versatile actor a role in every film he has directed since, ranging from high-profile turns, such as the lead in futuristic mindbender Looper, to blink-and-you-miss-it cameos, like voicing a Canto Bight resident in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Rian Johnson gave his good luck charm a similar role in Knives Out: a voice coming from Marta Cabrera’s (Ana de Armas) television credited as Detective Hardrock. It might be fun if Joseph Gordon-Levitt appeared in the follow-up as a character with a little more physicality. Maybe make him the murder victim that incites the plot, or an innocent, unrelated bystander who find the body, or even have him reprise the role of Detective Hardrock, who butts heads with Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc to be the head gumshoe of the investigation. Whatever his role might be, Knives Out 2 could benefit from a little extra JGL magic.
Knives Out 2 Needs It Own Trendsetting Fashion Moment
In addition to its ensemble cast of A-listers, impressive box office returns, and Academy Award-nomination for Best Original Screenplay, Knives Out was one of the most talked about movies of 2019 for one striking reason: Chris Evans’ sweater. As Ransom Drysdale, the adult grandson of Christopher Plummer’s slain Harlan Thrombey, Evans dons a white, warm ensemble that not only inspired a 150 percent spike in sales of an Irish clothing manufacturer’s similar product, but became a viral sensation to rival Baby Y
After managing to give Chris Evans an outfit almost as iconic as his Captain America uniform, it looks like the costume designer of Knives Out 2 better step it up this time. Perhaps give one female socialite character an exclusive handbag from Gucci, or a younger character a beanie with a fur pom that resembles flame, or maybe make the prime murder weapon a Victorian-style brooch. Who says lightning can’t be caught in a bottle twice when it comes to fashion?
Have A Star Wars Alum Make An Appearance In Knives Out 2
Knives Out was an especially huge achievement in how it managed to, mostly, silence the haters of Rian Johnson’s Star Wars installment: the subversive, to say the least, The Last Jedi. As someone who actually enjoyed the eighth chapter of the Skywalker Saga, I, for one, think it would be a great opportunity for Johnson to officially close the loop and give someone from the Star Wars cast a role in Knives Out 2.
Can you imagine how great Adam Driver would be as a, sort of, spiritual successor to Chris Evans’ spoiled man-child role, or how fun it would be to see Kelly Marie Tran take on the role of the central heroine, or making Mark Hamill a circus clown gone mad (a fun Joker reference)? Hell, why doesn’t Rian Johnson go the extra mile and make the Knives Out sequel one big Star Wars: The Last Jedi reunion, with every surviving actor making up the main cast along with The Force Awakens alum Daniel Craig? Unfortunately, that would make another fun casting idea I have impossible...
Give Knives Out 2 A Warmer Setting
To be clear, I cannot praise the set design of Knives Out enough: the secretive, antiquated mansion seen under a fall-season climate is the perfect pairing for a whodunnit. However, in retrospective, it seems a little too traditional for someone who loves to bend the rules like Rian Johnson. Therefore, for the sequel, I would suggest pulling a complete 180.
Rian Johnson has already said that, in addition to an updated cast and storyline, the Knives Out follow-up will also incorporate a new location, so, why not somewhere like Hawaii? Or, to be more specific, a tropical, solitary island on which Benoit Blanc is trapped with a murderer and a slew of suspicious vacationers? It would be a fun change of pace to set a whodunnit in a setting that is, not only warmer, but a unique juxtaposition to your typical murder mystery, especially when you considering how nothing bad is ever supposed to happen in paradise.
More Dessert Metaphors In Benoit Blanc’s Investigative Process
Daniel Craig proved his acting range surpasses his gritty iteration of 007 with his surprisingly hilarious portrayal of Benoit Blanc. The character’s apex mountain of comedic moments in Knives Out is, most likely, when he compares the frustrating gap in the Harlan Thrombey case to that of a donut. All I ask for in this sequel, should Daniel Craig return as Blanc, is another metaphorical explanation of the plot that involves some form of dessert item.
Daniel Craig could visualize his case as a bowl of ice cream he needs to keep from heating up before it turns to a melty mess, or call his prime suspect a gingerbread man who thought he could get away if not for the trail of crumbs he left behind, or anything, really. I don’t care what it is, but, as far as I am concerned, this dessert analogy must remain a fixture in all of however many Benoit Blanc mysteries Rian Johnson may have up his sleeve for the future.
One can only dream, of course, that any of these premonitions and desires will prove to be true once Rian Johnson releases his follow-up to Knives Out. We will be sure not to keep you in suspense for too long as we continue to gather clues about the latest forthcoming adventure of Benoit Blanc here at CinemaBlend.
