Apple TV+ thriller The Instigators could be getting a sequel, as stars Matt Damon and Casey Affleck – plus director Doug Liman – are said to be in talks to return.
Critics seemed to be somewhat divided over the merits of director Doug Liman’s crime caper, The Instigators, which emerged on Apple TV+ in August. It was a hit for the streaming platform/faceless tech giant, though, so there’s now word that the bickering stars at the centre of it, Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, are in talks to make a sequel. Director Doug Liman is also said to be thinking of lending his services again.
The story’s tucked away in a surprisingly long feature about baseball over on Deadline, and was spotted by the good folks at World Of Reel. In between all the chat about the Red Sox and other sports related matters, there’s a line that says Damon and Affleck are in “early talks with Apple execs to play those characters again in a sequel.” It also adds that the actors are “eager for the encore,” and that Liman wants to return as director, too.
“That would be incredible if it happened,” Damon said of a possible Instigators 2. “Look, it was the greatest most fun group of people. Working with Casey and with Doug again after all those years, and Apple was just amazing the whole way. Casey and I were just talking about how great that whole rollout was, the way they handled the movie.”
Read more: The Instigators review | Matt Damon and Casey Affleck bicker through a satisfying comedy thriller
Of the first film’s streaming success, Damon added, “They said that it was number one on all of the streaming, including the TV shows… So yeah, that would be wonderful if [Instigators 2] came to pass.”
About a pair of down-on-their-luck Bostonians who end up on the run after a heist goes wrong, The Instigators is a comedy thriller in the mould of Shane Black’s Kiss Kiss Bang Bang or The Nice Guys. It has roughly 50 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, if you go in for that sort of thing, but we rather liked the movie.
The Instigators released within weeks of Road House, another Doug Liman action film; that particular motion picture was overshadowed somewhat by the director’s very public feud with Amazon over its lack of a cinema release. A sequel to Road House is also in the works; few will be surprised that the Deadline piece mentioned above also confirms that Liman won’t be returning to direct it.
More on a possible Instigators sequel as it comes in. Meanwhile, do consider buying a copy of Film Stories magazine, in which you’ll find our lengthy interview with Doug Liman about the making of The Instigators (and getting all shouty in a meeting about Edge Of Tomorrow) among other features.
