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Heat 2, the sequel to Michael Mann’s 1995 classic crime drama film, will now be financed and distributed by United Artists, a division of Amazon MGM Studios. Warner Bros had originally announced its intentions to make the sequel back in July of 2022, but withdrew when it was unable to come to an agreement on a budget.
The film will be based on a 2022 best-selling novel that Mann co-authored with Meg Gardiner. Sources said that Mann originally wanted $250 million to make Heat 2 while Warner Bros. wanted to commit only $140 million. Mann was reportedly willing to agree to $170 million, but this was still too high for the studio.
According to an article in The Hollywood Reporter, Jerry Bruckheimer and Scott Stuber will be joining Mann and Nick Nesbitt as producers of the planned movie. If all goes well, Heat 2 could be going into production in 2026.
The original Heat, which is currently streaming on Paramount+, starred Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. De Niro played Neil McCauley, a seasoned criminal, while Pacino appeared in the role of his nemesis Vincent Hanna, a police officer. Others in the cast included the young Natalie Portman as well as Amy Brennenman, Ashley Judd, Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, and Jon Voight.
Mann and Gardiner’s recent novel provides a prequel in which Neil McCauley is portrayed as a younger perpetrator. The storyline also follows the character Chris Shiher trying to reconnect with his ex-girlfriend. For a time, the novel occupied the number-one position in the New York Times Book Review.
Though no casting decisions have yet been made, Leonardo DiCaprio is reportedly likely to play the role of Chris Shiherlis, the character played by Val Kilmer in the 1995 original. Other actors who were interested in the role included Austin Butler, Bradley Cooper, and Adam Driver.
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