Rian Johnson has been prepping his Knives Out sequel with gradual reveals of the big stars to follow the original Oscar-nominated whodunnit and it’s shaping up to be another all-star cast. Following recent news of Kathryn Hahn most recently joining the Netflix movie, Knives Out 2 has now lined up its sixth cast member and it’s a huge Hamilton star. Leslie Odom Jr. has been cast in Benoit Blanc’s next case.
Leslie Odom Jr. is coming off a massive year that had the 39-year-old actor and singer being nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal as Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami. Now he’ll be playing an undisclosed role in Rian Johnson’s Knives Out sequel with Daniel Craig, Janelle Monáe, Edward Norton, Kathryn Hahn and Dave Bautista, per The Hollywood Reporter.
The actor most famously portrayed Aaron Burr in the original cast of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s groundbreaking musical, which earned him a Tony for Best Actor in a Leading Role amidst the Broadway show’s other accolades. Many of those who missed his role on the stage got to see the actor play Aaron Burr in Disney+’s release of a recording of the Hamilton production. We’re definitely curious what kind of character he’ll play in Rian Johnson’s followup murder mystery coming to Netflix.
The original Knives Out had a massive cast including Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield and the late Christopher Plummer that introduced Benoit Blanc. The detective with a southern draw solved the murder of the wealthy patriarch of the Thrombey family that took place in a Massachusetts mansion. For the sequel, Johnson had teased that it will include a completely new cast and setting, with Daniel Craig’s character being the only common thread.
We have yet to hear the premise of the setting of Knives Out, but the film is setting up some major talent thus far from all corners of Hollywood. It is interesting to note that both Janelle Monáe and Leslie Odom Jr. are incredible singers, and it’s not off the table that that could factor into the movie somehow. Yet, each of them have shown skill for their acting chops just as well.
And funny enough for Odom Jr., back in 2017 the actor had a small role in the Agatha Christie adaptation Murder on the Orient Express, which has often been compared by Knives Out. Kenneth Branagh’s whodunnits follow the famed detective Hercule Poirot, which will continue next year with Death on the Nile. But, the added draw of Knives Out is Rian Johnson is coming up with completely original murder mysteries that have yet to be read in a book.
Knives Out is confirmed to be continuing with a second and third installment and landing on Netflix. While we wait, check out what movies are coming next on Netflix this year here on CinemaBlend.
