Last year, I had been told that Edgar Wright was very close to putting the finishing touches on his script for the “Baby Driver” sequel, and that it could very well be his next film. Then, a slew of projects, including his “Running Man” and “Barbarella” remakes, were announced, and I figured Wright put ‘Baby Driver 2’ on the backburner. Apparently not …
I guess my original intel was accurate since Daniel Richtman is reporting that the ‘Baby Driver’ sequel will indeed be Wright’s next film after “Running Man,” which is supposed to start shooting in late 2024.
No word yet on whether the original cast, including lead Ansel Elgort, will be back for this one, but Richtman says that Jon Bernthal will have a much larger role in the sequel. The original cast also included Jamie Foxx, Jon Hamm, Kevin Spacey and Elza Gonzalez.
As you know, although it was recently announced, Wright’s “Barbarella,” starring Sydney Sweeney, is still in the very early stages of development. That one’s probably not shooting until 2026 or 2027. It does make a lot of sense that “Baby Driver” would be next for Wright after “Running Man.”
Oh, and as for “The Chain,” which was once rumored to star Emma Stone, that one’s been shelved. It’s not happening. Wright has bigger fish to fry.
I find Wright to be an incredibly talented visual filmmaker, but he also has this annoying penchant for infantilism and silliness. There’s a film geek sensibility to his films that can sometimes rub me the wrong way.
With that being said, his best film is probably “Baby Driver” and its incredible usage of practical effects (save for the absurdly over-the-top final 20 minutes). Wright is coming off the worst-reviewed film of his career: 2019’s misbegotten “Last Night in Soho.” He still has his ardent fans who will go see whatever he does next, he’s built up this fanbase of support with such films as “Hot Fuzz,” “Scott Pilgrim vs The World” and “Shaun of the Dead.”