Rian Johnson scored a big win with 2019's Knives Out, a star-studded 'thriller' that proved to be both a critical and commercial success for the writer-director following his blockbuster but divisive Star Wars film The Last Jedi. Johnson announced plans for a Knives Out sequel shortly after the first film's release that would see Daniel Craig return as Detective Benoit Blanc to solve an all-new mystery. While news on the follow-up has been quiet since then, a big development happened today, with Variety reporting that Netflix has bought the rights to not one, but two Knives Out sequels for the staggering price of €450 million. The deal will see Johnson return to write and direct both sequels, alongside Craig, who will reprise his role as the brilliant redneck investigator who must solve a particularly complex murder mystery involving numerous suspects.
Why Knives Out is a good investment for Netflix
While €450 million may seem like an outrageous sum to pay for two mid-budget mystery films, the purchase gives Netflix a ready-made franchise that already has a built-in fanbase. Netflix has garnered a strong following over the years, but until now has struggled to develop compelling movie properties that have lasting appeal. The company has recently tried to launch a number of blockbuster-style franchises like The Old Guard, Project Power, and Outside the Wire, but most (aside from actor Chris Hemsworth's record-breaking breakout) faded from memory fairly quickly. On top of that, Netflix now has to compete with Disney Plus and HBO Max, which have a number of big franchise movies in the pipeline, including Star Wars, Marvel, and DC, so it makes sense that the streaming giant is building more. . aggressively its own exclusive properties with a legitimate attraction to the franchise. The first Knives Out grossed €311 million at the worldwide box office on a budget of just €40 million. The film also earned Johnson an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay. At this time, it's unclear if Knives Out 2 and 3 will also be released in theaters.