Fresh off his crowd-pleasing film for Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another, Leonardo DiCaprio could team with another high-profile filmmaker for one of the Crime genre’s most anticipated films, Heat 2. According to reports, United Artists, the Amazon MGM Studios division, is in talks to produce a sequel to Michael Mann’s Heat, with Leonardo DiCaprio eyed to star in the role of Chris Shiherlis, initially played by Val Kilmer in the 1995 film.
According to Deadline, no offers have been made to other actors. Initially, the movie was set up at Warner Bros, but when the studio couldn’t lock down a budget, it allowed Michael Mann to shop the project to other potential backers. Amazon entered the fray, though it, too, was hesitant about the price. Eventually, they agreed to Mann’s terms, with plans to shoot the sequel next year. Michael Mann, Jerry Bruckheimer, Scott Stuber, and Nick Nesbit will produce, with Shane Salerno and Eric Roth serving as executive producers.
Heat 2 takes place one day after the events of the original movie, as it follows a wounded Chris Shiherlis (Val Kilmer) desperately trying to escape Los Angeles. The story flashes back and forth to events years before the heist and the years immediately following. I can’t imagine anyone else taking on the iconic roles of the original movie. Still, Michael Mann has said that audiences are ready for a new story in the Heat universe. “It’s sustained in culture. It’s known,” Mann said. “I could delude myself into thinking that the whole world is familiar with it, but when you check out its prominence in home video for over 20 years, this thing really has legs. People are still watching it, people are still talking about it. It’s a brand. It’s kind of a Heat universe, in a way. And that certainly justifies a very large ambitious movie.”
What do you think about Leonardo DiCaprio taking over the role of Chris Shiherlis from the late Val Kilmer? Will Mann add prosthetics to make DiCaprio look like Kilmer? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
