Gerard Butler’s Monumental Action Franchise In Trouble?
During an interview to promote Plane, Gerard Butler gave an update on Night Has Fallen, noting the film is not even in pre-production yet so while it's coming, it will be awhile.
Best known for kicking people into pits in Zack Snyder’s 300, Gerard Butler has asserted himself as one of the most prolific action stars of the past two decades. One of his most popular and lucrative endeavors is the Has Fallen franchise, in which he stars as a US Secret Service agent alongside Morgan Freeman. In a recent interview with Comicbook.com, Butler said that the franchise’s next installment, Night Has Fallen, is in the works, but likely won’t make it to theaters for quite some time.
The Has Fallen films have grossed over half a billion dollars, and the successful franchise is set to expand with three more films and a potential television series. While talking about his upcoming action thriller Plane, which he stars in alongside Luke Cage actor Mike Colter, Gerard Butler offered a status update for the next entry in the hit franchise, Night Has Fallen. “We have a script for that, but I haven’t been working on it at the moment,” Butler said. “We have a really fun idea, it just needs to be developed.”
While he said that starring in action films has been fun, the non-stop fights in the Has Fallen series are a challenge, even for someone as tough as Gerard Butler. The actor expressed hope that he could be “the Tom Hanks of action movies,” playing more grounded heroes that have to dig deep in order to achieve their goals, saying, “We need, in a way, real heroes.” It is unclear if Gerard Butler will get his wish in Night Has Fallen, as the actor offered no details about the plot of the film, but the planned sequel is set to see the return of Angel Has Fallen director Ric Roman Waugh and The Fifth Element screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen.
As the world awaits the next Has Fallen film, there will be plenty more Gerard Butler to pass the time. Plane soars into theaters this weekend, and looks to pack quite a punch from its co-stars. The film follows a commercial aircraft pilot, played by Butler, who must make an emergency crash landing on an island riddled with war and rebellion. After several passengers are taken hostage, Butler’s character must team up with a convict accused of murder, played by Mike Colter, who was being transported by the FBI on the plane when it crashed.
In addition to Plane, Gerard Butler has several projects in the works. Butler is set to star in the sci-fi comedy Afterburn, a story about treasure hunters searching for Earth relics after the planet is largely destroyed by a solar flare. He will also star in Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, a sequel to the 2018 bank heist action flick, and will lend his voice to the animated action/adventure film Naya Legend of the Golden Dolphin.
Gerard Butler has had a storied career, ranging from musical drama with Phantom of the Opera, to romantic comedy with The Ugly Truth, to action spectacle in the Has Fallen series. Though fans may be disappointed to hear that Night Has Fallen is still a ways out, they can take comfort in knowing that the the sequel and a slew of others are on the way in due time. Until then, fans will have plenty of opportunities to get their Gerard Butler fix.
