Includes SPOILERS for Back in Action!

Cameron Diaz has returned to stardom with Back in Action on Netflix, and the film leaves a vital character to be cast for a sequel. 2025’s Back in Action brought Cameron Diaz out of retirement with her first movie in eleven years. She co-stars alongside Jamie Foxx as the lead, Emily, and the pair bring charisma and excitement to the fun new action movie. While their first adventure came to a close, Back in Action’s ending laid the foundation for a sequel, with the proposition of Emily’s father being a new character.

With the prospect of Back in Action 2 happening, an actor for Emily’s father must be cast. In the spirit of upping the game for a sequel, filmmaker Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses, Baywatch) would likely have to bring in an actor of some esteem to play this new co-protagonist, who would be joining Emily and Matt in their next mission to recover Chuck’s body. The pair aren’t off the hook yet, and things will only grow more complicated with her father being brought on board. To pull off this zany idea, a movie star actor is required.

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John Lithgow

Reuniting Fiona & Lord Farquaad

Part of the thrill of Back in Action was that Cameron Diaz, who was once one of the world’s most famous movie stars, would be returning to the industry after over a decade’s absence. With this fact and the movie’s тιтle in mind, Back in Action is fairly meta, and an excellent way to expand on the meta aspect would be to cast movie stars with some sort of connection to Diaz. Notably, both she and John Lithgow voiced characters in Shrek.

Shrek is undoubtedly one of Cameron Diaz’s best movies, as she plays Princess Fiona in the animated family movie classic. John Lithgow also stars as the villainous Lord Farquaad. This would be a fun connection, as they’ve never actually appeared on-screen together aside from voice acting. With John Lithgow being 79 years old and one of the world’s most prestigious veteran actors, he could be excellent for Back in Action.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Still A Great Action Star

Back in Action is packed with references to classic spy movies and action thrillers, paying homage to the films that influenced it. One of those movies is True Lies, the 1994 James Cameron-directed movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. In Back in Action, Jamie Foxx’s character makes a flamethrower out of a petrol pump, much like Schwarzenegger did in the original movie.

Known for film series like The Terminator and Predator, Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the defining action movie stars of the 1980s and 1990s. At 77 years old, he is still acting in shows like FUBAR, which recently saw him partnering with Netflix, meaning he’d be a perfect candidate to bring in as Diaz’s father. While known for his action roles and fitness, Schwarzenegger is a hilarious comedic talent and could be a fun addition.

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Sylvester Stallone

Making Good On The Creed References

Sylvester Stallone is best known to audiences as Rocky Balboa and Rambo, making him another iconic 1980s action movie star. Like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Stallone is still acting and as tough as ever, with his role as the lead on Paramount+’s Tulsa King allowing him to dip into the mafia genre. The actor is 78 now, making him the perfect age to play Cameron Diaz’s father.

Stallone’s casting would be another choice that pays off on references in Back in Action, with the film mentioning the Creed movies on multiple occasions. Creed is the successor franchise to Rocky, and Stallone starred in the first two as his iconic character.

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Kurt Russell

Kurt Russell Co-Starred With Diaz In Vanilla Sky

Kurt Russell is another of the great action heroes of the 1980s, and he has arguably had the best career of the three in recent memory. Aside from the films of Quentin Tarantino and his role in Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Russell just recently starred in Apple TV+’s Godzilla show, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and is rumored to appear in an upcoming Taylor Sheridan project.

Kurt Russell appeared alongside Cameron Diaz in the 2001 film Vanilla Sky, and though that movie’s tone is vastly different from Back in Action, it’s still a thriller movie reference that included the pair. Russell’s classic action movies include Escape from New York, Big Trouble in Little China, and many more.

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Pierce Brosnan

James Bond Could Be Emily’s Father

Pierce Brosnan is on the younger side of the actors who would be fit for a role in Back in Action, but the 71-year-old star could make it work. Brosnan recently appeared as a superhero in Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam for DC Comics, so he’s clearly still capable of putting on a thrilling show. However, the meat of this casting choice would be due to Brosnan playing James Bond in the 1990s.

There are some 007 references in Back in Action that would make an iconic Bond actor terrifically fun to bring on board. It would add a layer to the spy/secret agent homage and also add some humor with Emily having a randomly British father.