Rian Johnson has offered an honest and somewhat disappointing update on the possibility of Knives Out 4, ahead of the release of Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man: A Knives Out Mystery. Since debuting in 2019, Knives Out has become one of modern cinema’s most successful original franchises. Daniel Craig leads the murder mystery series as Detective Benoit Blanc.

The success of 2019’s Knives Out led Netflix to acquire two sequels, with Glᴀss Onion premiering in 2022 and Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man set to release later this year.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter at the BFI London Film Festival, Johnson revealed that Knives Out 4 hasn’t entered development. The director admitted that he has no idea what the next installment of the mystery franchise could be. However, he says he prefers to start ideating from scratch. Read his comments below:

I got nothing. If you have anything, I’ll take it. I think it’s good to totally empty the well and then start from scratch on the next one.

The director went on to praise Craig, his longtime collaborator and star of the franchise, saying that as long as they both enjoy making the films and audiences enjoy watching them, the Knives Out franchise will continue.

As long as Daniel and I have fun doing it, and he wants to do them, as long as audiences like them, and also as long as we can keep challenging ourselves and coming up with something that’s genuinely new. We’re on the same page that the moment, it feels like we’re just turning the crank on another one.

Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man unites Craig with an ensemble cast that includes Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Kerry Washington, Jeremy Renner, Cailee Spaeny, Andrew Scott, Josh O’Connor, Thomas Haden Church, and Daryl McCormack.

The film will see Benoit Blanc investigating the murder of a priest in an upstate New York parish, where he will dig into a congregation full of suspicious figures in what is set to be Benoit’s most dangerous case and Knives Out’s darkest chapter yet.

The Knives Out franchise has become one of modern cinema’s most reliable original stories. The 2019 original was released in theatres by Lionsgate, earning over $310 million worldwide and an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay, and holds a 97% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Glᴀss Onion, the 2022 Netflix sequel, reached over 200 million viewing hours on the streamer and was met with similar critical acclaim, holding a 91% Rotten Tomatoes score. Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man debuted with a 100% Tomatometer and currently holds a 92% score based on 61 reviews.

Wake Up ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man: A Knives Out Mystery is set to release in select theaters November 26 and on Netflix December 12.