Is Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery the final chapter of Rian Johnson‘s whodunit mystery film series? That’s what every fan of the franchise wants to know after the completion of Johnson’s two-sequel distribution deal with Netflix. It sounds like Johnson not only wants to continue the series, but he’s already got ideas!
Speaking at the Los Angeles premiere of Wake Up Dead Man, Johnson said he’d like to continue expanding the Knives Out universe.
“Creatively, I feel energized after making this one,” he told The Hollywood Reporter on the red carpet at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. “Daniel and I are already starting to formulate … what could the next one be if we do another one?”
“I don’t know why I would stop doing it if we could keep making them,” Johnson added, concerning the fun that comes with reinventing the series with every installment, thanks mainly to a rotating cast of Hollywood heavy-hitters.
Here’s the official synopsis for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery:
Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) returns for his most dangerous case yet in the third and darkest chapter of Rian Johnson’s murder mystery opus. When young priest Jud Duplenticy (Josh O’Connor) is sent to assist charismatic firebrand Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin), it’s clear that all is not well in the pews. Wicks’s modest-but-devoted flock includes devout church lady Martha Delacroix (Glenn Close), circumspect groundskeeper Samson Holt (Thomas Haden Church), tightly-wound lawyer Vera Draven, Esq. (Kerry Washington), aspiring politician Cy Draven (Daryl McCormack), town doctor Nat Sharp (Jeremy Renner), best-selling author Lee Ross (Andrew Scott), and concert cellist Simone Vivane (Cailee Spaeny). After a sudden and seemingly impossible murder rocks the town, the lack of an obvious suspect prompts local police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis) to join forces with renowned detective Benoit Blanc to unravel a mystery that defies all logic. Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Rian Johnson writes and directs Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, and assembles another all-star, award-winning cast.
What do you think about Rian Johnson continuing the Knives Out franchise? Who else would you like to see join the rotating cast? Let us know in the comments section below.
