Steven Knight says an Eastern Promises sequel may start shooting this year

It may not seem like the most likely film to receive a sequel, but there's been talk of a follow-up to David Cronenberg's EASTERN PROMISES for nearly a decade. The gritty film told the story of a mid-wife (Naomi Watts) who got caught up in the world of the Russian mob when a young teenager died during childbirth. Viggo Mortensen also starred as Nikolai Luzhin, a fearsome driver/cleaner for the mob family who took part in a extremely memorable and brutal fight scene which found the actor battling in the nude. Yeah, you remember that one.

At one point both Viggo Mortensen and Vincent Cassel were slated to return for a sequel with David Cronenberg set to direct, but Cronenberg spoke with JoBlo in 2012 to say that the project had fallen apart and was "pretty much dead." However, it seems that the EASTERN PROMISES sequel is back in action as original screenwriter Steven Knight told Collider that a script has been written and will likely go into production later this year.

It is like fishing, where you leave it out there. And it’s been out there for a while. It went through permutations in the sense of, how do you follow Viggo? We’ve been through that and we’ve moved on and now we’re in a position where I will say “watch this space,” we’re close to getting into production.

Steven Knight said that a director is already attached to the EASTERN PROMISES sequel and that Viggo Mortensen will not be back. That's a shame and I really can't see the point in moving forward without him, but what can you do. Knight also added that the script has changed quite a bit due to recent events in the world, namely the controversy surrounding President Donald Trump's alleged ties to Russia.

What are your thoughts on an EASTERN PROMISES sequel after all these years? Particularly one without Viggo Mortensen.