Rian Johnson explains his approach to developing Knives Out 2. Released this past November, the original Knives Out was one of 2019’s breakout hits, earning widespread critical acclaim (including an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay) and over $300 million at the worldwide box office. Even before Knives Out achieved that much success, Johnson was talking about the possibility of making a followup starring Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc. And now that the film is a bonafide hit, Lionsgate is officially moving forward with a Knives Out sequel, with Johnson in the early stages of writing the script.
One of Knives Out’s greatest strengths was its ensemble cast, as Craig was surrounded by an all-star lineup that included Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, and a plethora of other famous names. As fun as it was to see those actors play against each other, Johnson has already confirmed Craig is the only one returning for Knives Out 2. The idea behind it is the story will be another Benoit Blanc mystery, similar to Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot novels. Now, Johnson’s opened up a little more behind his thought process.
Appearing on the Lionsgate Unlocked podcast to promote the Knives Out home media release, Johnson briefly discussed the upcoming sequel. He said his goal is to have the new film “be totally different from Knives Out in a lot of ways, but hopefully it will have the same essence of the stuff I love.” When asked why only Craig is coming back, Johnson elaborated further on the blossoming franchise’s murder-mystery inspirations:
“The tropes of the genre, there’s a lot of different modes in which the genre operates. And there’s a lot of modes that I love. The ABC Murders is a much different type of book than The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, which is much different And Then There Were None…, which is much different than, you know, N or M? There’s a lot of different ways… Agatha Christie had to keep herself fresh with each book. And then you get into the locked door puzzle boxes of John Dixon Carr. It’s fertile ground to dig in. We’ve, so far, with Knives Out only done one little corner of the garden, so it’s going to be fun to wander out, you know…
… For me, part of the challenge that’s fun is ‘how do you fit this into a movie?’ A lot of the structure of Knives Out in terms of just how the basic thing works was calculating how do I translate the experience of a great mystery novel into a two hour movie.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise Johnson wants Knives Out 2 to be different from its predecessor. For better or worse, one of his calling cards as a director is subverting audience expectations, putting his unique spin on well-versed genres and concepts. This is also an indication Johnson isn’t content to just rest on his laurels and deliver a Knives Out retread; he’s looking to challenge himself while also having a bit of fun. One of the benefits of a mid-budget property like Knives Out is Johnson has the freedom to play around and try new things. It would be interesting if each Knives Out film (assuming there are more installments after the second one) experimented with varying tones and styles so each mystery feels fresh and keeps viewers on their toes.
Johnson has the right idea, but this will still be a tall task. While the first Knives Out was anticipated to a certain extent (primarily due to the talent involved), it became a far bigger hit than even the rosiest optimists anticipated. Knives Out 2 isn’t going to be able to sneak up on people the way the original did. No doubt, Johnson is aware of that and will do everything he can to ensure the film serves up plenty of surprising twists and turns people don’t see coming.
