Ethan Hawke Gives Update On Reviving 100% RT Movie Franchise

Ethan Hawke comments on whether the acclaimed Before Trilogy will ever return with a fourth movie. Consisting of Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), and Before Midnight (2013), the trilogy hails from director Richard Linklater and chronicles the relationship between Hawke’s Jesse and Julie Delpy’s Céline over two decades.

Speaking to Variety‘s Awards Circuit Podcast ahead of the release of his latest Linklater collaboration, Blue Moon, Hawke casts doubt on returning for another Before movie. According to the actor, the trilogy presents what feels to him to be a complete journey:

The answer I usually give is that the three films feel complete. The first one begins with us on a train listening to a couple in their mid-40s fighting, and in the third one, we’ve become that couple. The circle feels complete.

Hawke doesn’t totally close the door on revisiting these characters, though. The Jesse actor says it would just have to happen in a way where he, Delpy, and Linklater were all on the same page about the story they wanted to tell:

If we were to do another, it might not be a “Before” film. It could be something new — maybe the “After” series. But part of what made those movies special is that Julie, Rick, and I were always in sync about what we wanted to say. That could happen again one day — it might start with one phone call or an email. But we don’t want to outlive our fan base.

The Before Trilogy remains one of the most acclaimed projects of Hawke’s career. On Rotten Tomatoes, Before Sunrise enjoys a 100% score from critics, while Before Sunset and Before Midnight have 94% and 98%, respectively.

In addition to being a critical success, the Before Trilogy was also a commercial one. Each of the three movies features a small budget of around $3 million or less, and all three concluded their theatrical runs easily in the realm of profitability. Before Midnight, for example, grossed around $23 million worldwide.

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy walking together in Before Sunset

With Blue Moon set to release on October 24 in the U.S., Hawke and Linklater clearly still enjoy a healthy working relationship. The film, which also stars Andrew Scott and The Substance cast member Margaret Qualley, chronicles the turbulent years of lyricist Lorenz Hart as he grapples with the opening of Oklahoma!, a musical from his former partner.

The response to Blue Moon has, so far, been very positive from critics. Though not reaching the heights of the Before Trilogy, the new film has an 88% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes from 77 reviews. What remains to be seen is whether Blue Moon will also be a financial success.

In any case, Hawke has left hopes alive for another Before-style collaboration with Linklater and Delpy. It’s worth noting, however, that the theatrical landscape is very different today than it was in 2013, and it’s far from a guarantee that another story involving Jesse and Céline would be a hit, even if it was made on a small budget.

It’s also not clear whether Hawke’s use of the word “series” is in reference to an actual TV show or if he’s using the word to describe another series of movies. A TV show could actually be a good fit for an After story given how much what is deemed “theatrical” has changed. For now, though, those hoping for more Before Trilogy stories will just have to be patient.