Although Knives Out 2 was officially greenlit in February 2020, the sequel to director/writer Rian Johnson’s hit 2019 whodunnit has been making significant progress in recent weeks. Following the announcement in late March that both Knives Out 2 and Knives Out 3 are being set up at Netflix, yesterday it was revealed that Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista will join Daniel Craig on the former movie. Now word’s come in that another Marvel Cinematic Universe alum is taking part in Knives Out 2: The Incredible Hulk’s Edward Norton.
As with Dave Bautista’s casting, Edward Norton’s involvement in Knives Out 2 was reported by Deadline, although no details about who he’s playing were revealed. All we know for certain right now is that Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc will be back to solve another mystery following his time investigating the Thrombey family in Knives Out, which was met with critical acclaim and made over $311 million worldwide. Evidently Norton will be one of the individuals he crosses paths with in this next adventure.
Unlike Dave Bautista, Edward Norton’s time in the MCU was short, as he only played Bruce Banner/The Hulk in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, with Mark Ruffalo succeeding him in the role starting with The Avengers four years later. Nevertheless, Norton has been keeping quite busy in the years following his Marvel exit, with his film credits including Moonrise Kingdom, The Bourne Legacy, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Birdman, Alita: Battle Angel and Motherless Brooklyn, the latter of which he also wrote, directed and produced. Along with Knives Out 2, Norton is set to star in The French Dispatch, yet another collaboration with filmmaker Wes Anderson.
Without any plot details to go off of, it’s hard to say how Edward Norton fits into the Knives Out 2 picture, although one thing is practically certain: Benoit Blanc will end up looking into his potential connection in whatever crime unfolds in the sequel. Much like the Agatha Christie-created character Hercule Poirot, Rian Johnson is having Daniel Craig’s Blanc traveling around to investigate various unconnected mysteries, hence why it’s unlikely anyone from the Thrombey family will be back this time around.
Netflix’s deal to acquire Knives Out 2 and Knives Out 3 cost somewhere between $450-$470 million, with Daniel Craig and Rian Johnson reportedly both walking away with over $100 million each. In addition to having already written both movies, Johnson will also reprise his directing duties on them and produce alongside partner Ram Bergman, who co-owns and licenses the Knives Out property.
With Knives Out 2 gearing up to shoot in Greece this summer, you can expect more casting announcements, so stay tuned to CinemaBlend for those news items. In the meantime, keep track of what’s coming out later this year with our upcoming 2021 movies schedule.
