Netflix is negotiating with Louis Leterrier to direct Bright 2, the sequel to the 2017 film that kicked off the streamer’s feature film franchise launch aspirations.
David Ayer directed the first film and was attached to the sequel, but he has been focused on rewriting to direct Dirty Dozen for Warner Bros, and he has other projects at Netflix.
The film will reteam Will Smith and Joel Edgerton in the tale of mismatched crime fighting partners, one of whom is an orc. The script is by Ayer and Evan Spiliotopoulos with a rewrite by T.S. Nowlin. The pic is produced by Ayer, Eric Newman, Bryan Unkeless and Ray Angelic.
Netflix set sights on a sequel in early 2018 after the original was released and watched by a record estimated 60 million, with far and away the most views for a Netflix film in its first week. Those numbers have been eclipsed by a number of followup big budget films, all topped by Extraction, the latest action film that Deadline revealed is getting a sequel after Netflix projected that the film will be viewed by 90 million households in its first four weeks of release.
Sources said that the Bright sequel picks up the travails of the odd partnership, but sets it on an international stage. Bought by Netflix after a ferocious spec package auction, the film got so-so reviews, but it was important in that it got the streamer in business with Smith, and now big movie stars routinely top line Netflix film and TV series.
In Leterrier, Netflix is bringing in a director who helmed Now You See Me, Clash of the Titans, The Transporter films, Unleashed and for Netflix he has directed all 10 episodes of the series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, which he exec produced.
They will ready the film to begin production as soon as it is possible to begin making films again.
