Den of Thieves 2: Pantera was the long-awaited sequel to the 2018 heist/thriller film, continuing the escapades of O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s Donnie and Gerard Butler’s Big Nick. The film has just hit streaming services, bringing the sequel to brand-new audiences around the world who didn’t manage to catch the movie during its theatrical run. While Den of Thieves 2‘s reviews weren’t great, it managed to become enough of a success to cause a third film to be confirmed, which will likely pick up pretty soon after the events of the previous film.
Similarly to the original 2018 movie, Den of Thieves 2 ends the story of the film in a pretty definitive way, while also leaving the door wide open for another entry in the fledgling franchise. With writer/director Christian Gudegast set to return for the third film, the second project is even more important now, as a big part of the eventual sequel will undoubtedly be exploring where Den of Thieves 2‘s characters are after the events of the movie, especially Big Nick, whose motivations change quite drastically over the course of Pantera.
Big Nick Smiles After Reading Donnie’s Text In Den Of Thieves 2’s Ending
Nick Was Apparently Very Happy That Donnie Was Able To Escape
Den of Thieves 2 ends with a big twist, similarly to the first movie, where Donnie and the rest of his crew are taken in by the authorities, betrayed by Big Nick after their successful heist. However, Donnie and the Panthers are broken out of a prisoner transport by the mafia, freeing them. After his escape, he texts Nick, saying “And the tiger changes stripes. All the cats out of the cage. C U soon, Fraulein.” Nick sees the text as he is driving along the coast, leading to him breaking out in a smile as the movie ends.
Why Big Nick Is Happy Donnie Is Out Even Though He Turned Him In
The Two Characters Forged A Strong Friendship During The Movie
Despite the fact that Nick was the one to turn Donnie into the authorities in the first place, he was clearly happy to see him eventually broken out, which is a very interesting aspect to his character. Obviously, he was in on the breakout, as evidenced by the scene in which Gerard Butler’s Nick meets up with Donnie in prison. Nick tells Donnie that the friendship that they forged over the course of the film was real, before telling him to “Sit back left,” when he makes it onto the prisoner transport.
When Donnie is being broken out, the apparent kidnappers give him the same instructions that Nick did, confirming that Nick was one of the main people behind the breakout, which also implies that he is working with the mafia. As for why he decided to go against the authorities, Nick was torn between two worlds the whole movie, with the law on one side and Donnie and the criminals on the other, and this part of Den of Thieves 2‘s ending proved that he finally made his choice and sided with the criminal underworld.
