It’s been 17 long years since the live-action adaptation of DC Comics character John Constantine was released. The film, named after the character, was privileged to have the popular The matrix star Keanu Reeves in his cast, and with recent plans for a potential sequel making the rounds, excitement for the character has been reignited.
Fans have been eagerly awaiting a movie sequel, and after all these years of waiting, their thirst has been quenched. As it stands, a sequel is currently in development with original director Francis Lawrence set to return as the man behind the camera, and best of all, Keanu Reeves will return as John Constantine!
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How the long-awaited Constantine 2 was born
After the cult following that emerged after the release of the original film loosely based on the hellblazer comedic, the announcement of a second Constantine film is long overdue. But it also had a difficult development process.
In 2011, director Francis Lawrence admitted that “It would be great to find a sequel”and if they were to, they would try to make an R-Rated version that would be “agonizing”.
These plans seemed to have been foiled by the announcement of an agreement signed by Pan’s Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro to take the director’s place to write and direct a film around John Constantine, among many other members of the Justice League Dark crew.
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Fans’ hopes were at their highest a few years later when Keanu Reeves himself said he would be open to reprising his role as the character in the future in 2019, reiterating his desire to do so again in 2021. .
In the end, fans finally got the news they wanted to hear, which was an official announcement about the development of a second movie that will be a follow-up to Constantine.
In September 2022, Deadline confirmed that the sequel would happen, and Francis Lawrence will return as director with Reeves set to reprise his role as the titular character. Akiva Goldsman will write the screenplay and produce the film with JJ Abrams and Hannah Minghella.
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Francis Lawrence Hints Constantine’s Sequel Will Take Time
During a recent interview with Steve Weintraub of Collider, in which Weintraub speaks with Slumberland director Francis Lawrence, the latter could not help turning the tide on the Constantine after.
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The 51-year-old director explained why it’s taken so long for the sequel to finally be operational in development. He explains-
“It’s something we’ve been talking about since we created Constantine because we all loved him. So we talked about it, talked about it, talked about it.”
“All DCs [properties]because Vertigo is part of DC, much like controlling those properties got complicated with Warner Bros. with DC, with JJ [Abrams]’s deal, you know, all that sort of stuff. There are many complicating factors.
“So it was never Akiva and Keanu, and I’m kind of sold on that. I was really trying to figure out how we could take back some kind of control over the Constantine character.
The return of Keanu Reeves as the titular character is a bonus on top of the official announcement. But as Lawrence hints, it will take some time to complete the sequel, as calling back the original actors for their roles would also be a task.
There is no confirmed release date for a Constantine sequel, although it is in development.
Source: Collider
