Mike Banning just can’t catch a break. Three years ago, Gerard Butler’s chiselled secret agent bore witness to a devastating terrorist attack on the White House in Olympus Has Fallen, before shipping across the pond to tackle threats anew in middling sequel London Has Fallen.
The fun doesn’t stop there, however, as Deadline reports that Butler has agreed terms to headline Angel Has Fallen, the third entry into the wildly over-the-top action series. Setting up shop at Millennium Films, the general gist for Angel reveals that Mike Banning’s hunter will become the hunted, as new enemies prepare to wage war on Washington D.C.. That places the POTUS in danger once more, though Deadline’s scoop points to Air Force One (codenamed Angel) as a possible focal point.
Franchise creators Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt are the brains behind the latest installment, though there’s currently no mention of a director. Gerard Butler will produce, however, and Millennium has tentatively mapped out plans for filming to get underway in the first half of 2017.
Though it’s fair to say critics didn’t exactly take to Olympus Has Fallen nor its 2015 follow-up, the Fallen franchise – if that’s what we’re calling it now – is a textbook example of a mid-budget actioner justifying its future by raking in relatively big box office numbers. Both films have landed in the $160 and $200 million margin worldwide, but can Butler and Co. keep the momentum trucking along into 2017 and beyond?
Just when Mike Banning thought his days of espionage were long behind him, Angel Has Fallen comes calling. Expect more news to emerge as Millennium preps the threequel to enter production early next year.