The 2001 action comedy Ocean’s Eleven has become an iconic piece of Hollywood history, and two of the main cast members, George Clooney and Brad Pitt, were set to return to appear in a sequel, however, this Ocean’s Fourteen project never came to be for one sad reason. Ocean’s Eleven follows character Danny Ocean and Rusty Ryan as they gather a group of eleven men to help them complete a heist against Ocean’s ex-wife’s lover. The film is based on the 1960 film of the same name starring The Rat Pack, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop.
After 2001’s Ocean’s Eleven, the film produced two sequels, Ocean’s Twelve in 2004 and Ocean’s Thirteen in 2007. The rumored Ocean’s Fourteen would have been the next film in the franchise. While in development, it had been confirmed that George Clooney and Brad Pitt, Danny Ocean and Rusty Ryan respectively, would return for the project. However, this sequel never happened. Although Ocean’s Fourteen was rumored to happen right after the release of Ocean’s Thirteen, one tragic event made the film quickly unravel.
Talks For Ocean’s Fourteen Stopped After Bernie Mac Passed Away
Ultimately, Ocean’s Fourteen never happened due to the death of actor Bernie Mac. Mac was a stand-up comedian, best known for projects like The Original Kings of Comedy, Mr. 3000, The Bernie Mac Show, and Ocean’s Eleven. In the film, Mac played Frank Catton, a former card dealer and con-man. In 2008, Mac was admitted to the ICU and passed away after suffering from a cardiac arrest. It seems that, without Bernie Mac to reprise his role as Frank Catton, director Steven Soderbergh completely abandoned the idea of another Ocean’s film.
According to an interview with Don Cheadle in Entertainment Weekly, he and Soderbergh “…were talking about [Ocean’s Fourteen], and then Bernie passed, and very quickly we were like, ‘No, we don’t want to do it.‘” This decision was likely for the best, since it would have been strange to make another movie without Mac’s character, or worse, to replace Mac with a new actor. Plus, the more time that passed after Ocean’s Thirteen meant that the possibility of an Ocean’s Fourteen became slimmer and slimmer. Although it may have been a great addition to the franchise, Mac’s death was a definitive end to the franchise, and for good reason.
The Ocean’s Franchise Has Been Rebooted Twice Since Ocean’s Thirteen
Even though Ocean’s Fourteen never happened, the Ocean’s franchise hasn’t gone completely. Although Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Eleven is the one most audiences think of when they consider the franchise, the 1960 version is still available to watch, and captures the same magic. Furthermore, the story was rebooted again 2018 with Ocean’s 8, an all-female version of the film. In fact, the Ocean’s franchise even has future plans. An untitled Ocean’s Eleven prequel set in 1960s Europe starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in currently in the works. Therefore, even without Ocean’s Fourteen, the Ocean’s Eleven franchise is still going strong.
