There's been something lacking in our lives for more than a decade; you may not know what it is, but it's there, that small knot in your stomach which never goes away, and never will until Nicolas Cage steals the Declaration of Independence…again. NATIONAL TREASURE and NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS starred Nicolas Cage as Benjamin Gates, a treasure hunter who uncovers mysteries and secrets from U.S. history with the help of his father (Jon Voight), girlfriend (Diane Kruger), and sidekick (Justin Bartha). The two films were a hell of a lot of fun, but for whatever reason, a third installment of the franchise has never materialized.
Buried in an article from THR regarding another BAD BOYS sequel was the revelation that one of several projects which BAD BOYS FOR LIFE co-writer Chris Bremmer is working on is NATIONAL TREASURE 3, which, like BAD BOYS, is also set to be produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. That said, they're been trying to crack NATIONAL TREASURE 3 for years with no success, so I wouldn't get overly excited just yet. Director Jon Turteltaub told Collider two years ago that a script for NATIONAL TREASURE 3 was close, but that Disney didn't want to move forward with it at the time. "The script was close, but not so great that the studio couldn’t say yes. But it’s been good enough that the studio could have said, 'Yes, keep going. Get closer,'" Turteltaub said. "[Producer] Jerry Bruckheimer is the master of taking something that’s good enough and turning it into something great in about an hour and a half. It’s a little nerve-wracking but it works." Turteltaub also believes it comes down to Disney believing other films would make them more money.
It’s really that Disney feels they have other films they want to make that they think will make them more money. I think they’re wrong. I think they’re right about the movies they’re making; they’re obviously doing a really good job at making great films. I just think this would be one of them, and they don’t quite realize how much the Internet is begging for a third National Treasure.
I'd certainly love to see Nicolas Cage get another crack at NATIONAL TREASURE, so here's hoping that Disney gives the franchise another chance.
