With all the upheaval in the DC movie world right now we almost forgot about Constantine 2, but the Keanu Reeves project is still ticking along. Now the director, Francis Lawrence, has offered a tantalizing update which has really put the fire in our belly again.
Being a separate entity from the rest of the burgeoning DCU, the powers that be can pretty much play by their own rules when it comes to the Constantine 2 release date. Of all the upcoming DC movies, the long-awaited sequel to the 2005 Keanu Reeves flick is one we’ve heard very little about… until now.
Speaking to GameSpot, Lawrence explained the radio silence: “So Constantine 2 obviously got held up by the Writers Strike. And we had to jump through a bunch of hurdles to get control of the character again, because other people had control of the Vertigo stuff. We have control [now].”
Getting creative control of the DC character is a massive step and will make things a lot easier for the team to actually get this film off the ground. Simply put, if you don’t have the rights to Constantine, you ain’t making a Constantine movie. You only have to look at the issues Marvel has with a character like The Incredible Hulk — to whom they do not technically own the rights and cannot make a Hulk solo film — to see that this Constantine development is a huge win.
In terms of the future, Lawrence sounded pretty optimistic, adding: “Keanu, Akiva Goldsman, and I have been in meetings and have been hashing out what we think the story is going to be. There’s more meetings that have to happen — the script has to be written — but [we’re] really hoping that we get to do Constantine 2, and make a real R-rated version of it.”
The fact meetings are happening is a good sign, but talking about something and actually making it happen are two very different things in this industry. So many projects get stuck in the pipeline and fall by the wayside, regardless of how much people want them to happen.
Even the best superhero movies face an uphill battle to to get a sequel to the big screen, as Henry Cavill learned the hard way from the rollercoaster ride of trying to get Man of Steel 2 off the ground. Or, worse yet, a film like The Flash, which finally made it into the light after years of production hell, and ended up being an absolute failure, critically and financially.
That said, if anyone can make something happen, it’s Keanu Reeves. Since the success of the John Wick franchise, Reeves’ stock has risen and his fandom has awoken once more. Needless to say, any Keanu Reeves movie you put out there these days is very likely to succeed at the box office, so we have high hopes for Constantine 2.
The mention of an R-rated Constantine is something that really gets our juices flowing, and to be honest, it’s an absolute must for something like this. You simply cannot make a movie about a badass exorcist, demons, and hell, and try to restrict that with an age rating. If the MCU is letting Deadpool 3 be R-rated, then we’re sure DC and its general darker tone can give Constantine 2 the same freedom.
There’s sure to be lots of gritty violence in the new movies coming to DC’s Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters, and you can learn about some of those future projects with our guides to Superman Legacy and the Aquaman 2 release date. You can also scout out the best movies from the franchise, with our guide to watching the DC movies in order.