Having previously worked together on 2011’s Just Go With It, Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston reunited for Murder Mystery, the Netflix comedy about a couple who find themselves getting caught up in a murder investigation while vacationing on a yacht. Premiering in June 2019, Murder Mystery was watched by a lot of subscribers over its first month of availability, resulting in a sequel entering development the following October. Nearly two full years later, Murder Mystery 2 is finally moving forward at Netflix, as evidenced by a key behind-the-scenes hire.
Jeremy Garelick, whose credits include The Break-Up, The Wedding Ringer and last year’s The Binge, has been tapped to direct Murder Mystery 2, taking over directorial duties from Kyle Newacheck. Additionally, Deadline reports that Garelick will do a polish of the sequel’s script that was written by James Vanderbilt, who also penned the first movie. Murder Mystery 2 is being fast-tracked to shoot at a yet-to-be-revealed time in Paris and the Caribbean.
Critically speaking, Murder Mystery fell into mixed territory, ranking at 44% among professional critics on Rotten Tomatoes and earning a 42% audience score. However, as already noted, the movie wasn’t lacking for views, as Netflix reported in July 2019 that it was watched by over 73 million households during its first four weeks. It was the fifth movie in Adam Sandler’s exclusive distribution arrangement with Netflix, following The Ridiculous 6, The Do-Over, Sandy Wexler and The Week Of, and sixth on the streaming service overall counting The Meyerowitz Stories. Jennifer Aniston also had some Netflix cred under her belt at the time from 2018’s Dumplin’.
Murder Mystery’s cast also included Luke Evans, Terence Stamp, Gemma Arterton and David Williams, among others, though there’s no word on if anyone else from the first movie will be joining Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler on the sequel. Much like how Rian Johnson’s Knives Out 2 will follow Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc on an investigation in a different part of the world, I imagine Aniston and Sandler’s Audrey and Nick Spitz will find themselves surrounded by a brand-new lineup of faces as they once again find themselves looking into someone’s unexpected death.
Murder Mystery 2 is just one of several movies Adam Sandler has lined up with Netflix, having signed a new deal with the platform in early 2020. Sandler will next star in Hustle, which is about a former basketball scout trying to restart his recruiting career with a player he brings to the NBA from China. That will be followed by Spaceman, which is based on the 2017 novel Spaceman of Bohemia. As for Jennifer Aniston, she’s still starring as Alex Levy on the Apple TV+ series The Morning Show and has a biopic called Hail Mary in the works.
While we wait for more news about Murder Mystery 2 to trickle in, find out what Netflix has released so far this month, and what’s still to come in August, with our detailed guide.
