Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man: A Knives Out Mystery

director Rian Johnson addresses whether the upcoming film will be the last in the franchise. After the success of Johnson’s first Knives Out movie in 2019, Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc returned in Glᴀss Onion, a 2022 sequel. Now, the Southern detective is set to solve yet another murder in the star-studded Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man, which also features Josh Brolin, Cailee Spaeny, Mila Kunis, Andrew Scott, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Josh O’Connor, Thomas Haden Church, and Glenn Close.

During a recent interview with Collider, Johnson shares an update on the Knives Out franchise’s future after Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man, hinting that his time with Benoit Blanc may not yet be at an end, so long as Craig continues to want to play the role. He does reveal, however, that his next project after the third film will be something entirely different. Check out Johnson’s comment below:

“As long as Daniel [Craig] still wants to keep doing it and as long as we have an idea that, to us, feels not just like cranking another one out, but feels genuinely exciting and scary like, ‘Oh, wow, could we pull that off?’ I love the genre. It’s endlessly malleable, and so it holds endless possibilities. But at the same time, I have made three of them in a row. I don’t feel burnt out on it at all, but the next thing I have in my head to write is an original that’s not a mystery at all. It’s a totally different genre. One of the things I love about the mystery genre is that it holds the whodunit. Like sci-fi, it encompᴀsses so many other types of genres. ‘Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man,’ this next movie, is so different than ‘Glᴀss Onion.’ It’s like night and day. And so, as long as we keep doing that, it’s exciting.”

What This Means For The Knives Out Franchise

Daniel Craig Has Also Addressed Benoit Blanc’s Future

The Knives Out cast continues to change with each new movie, but Craig has remained a constant. Blanc is the central figure around which Johnson crafts his murder-mystery stories, which explains why he wouldn’t want to make Knives Out 4 without Craig. Fortunately, Craig seems to very much enjoy playing the detective, telling Variety: “If Johnson keeps writing them like that, then yes, I will play it.”

Combined, the comments from Johnson and Craig suggest that Knives Out 4 is a matter of “when” and not “if.” It is possible that the reception to Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man will impact how willing the duo are to reunite, but Glᴀss Onion reviews were positive from critics and audiences alike, and the same can be said for the original movie, suggesting the third film is on sure footing. With the Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man releasing later this year and Johnson planning a different film after that, audiences should probably not expect another Benoit Blanc mystery until 2029 or beyond.

Our Take On Rian Johnson’s Knives Out Franchise Update

A Break Between Movies Could Be A Good Thing

Judging from the glowing reception to both previous films, Johnson and Craig are a strong creative pairing. The character of Blanc continues to be entertaining, and it’s clear that Craig is having a good time with the character after years of playing his gritty and serious James Bond. Even though a fourth film may be a number of years away, this could actually be a good thing for the franchise.

In this age of sequels and IP-based movies, Knives Out 4 not happening right away could give audiences time to miss the franchise, and Johnson could avoid franchise fatigue. How much excitement there is about a fourth installment, however, will likely depend on how successful Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man Is. Thankfully, going off of Johnson’s track record thus far, the next Blanc mystery seems unlikely to disappoint.

Source: Collider