Movies

The ‘Extraction’ Franchise is Full of Interesting Possibilities

Joe Russo doesn’t know if the next movie will be a sequel or a prequel, but both scenarios present some exciting options.
Extraction, Jb Nef
By  · Published on May 6th, 2020

Good news, action fans. Extraction is a big hit. According to Netflix, the violent actioner, which stars Chris Hemsworth as a mercenary-for-hire, is reportedly on its way to becoming the most-watched premiere in the streaming service’s history. And this has inspired them to greenlight another one.

Deadline reports that producer/writer Joe Russo has inked a deal to pen the next installment of the franchise. The plan is for Hemsworth and director Sam Hargraves to return as well, but nothing has been set in stone yet.

The first film is adapted from Ciudad, a graphic novel by Russo, Andre Parks, and Fernando Leon Gonzalez set in Mexico instead of the movie’s Bangladesh. That’s currently the only literary work out there about Hemsworth’s mercenary character, Tyler Rake, meaning that the sequel (or prequel) will be a brand new story. Russo told Deadline:

“We’re not committing yet to whether that story goes forward, or backward in time. We left a big loose ending that leaves question marks for the audience.”

While Russo is currently undecided on whether to set the new movie before or after the events of Extraction, he has teased some interesting possibilities for both options. In an interview with Collider, he revealed that he wants to delve into the backstory of how Hemsworth and David Harbour’s characters came to know each other. There’s clearly a history there, after all.

“[T]heir backstory is these guys trained together and they spent a lot of time together in the military and even outside of that, in the private military sector, and their skills would be matched but they just went in different directions. Harbour[‘s character] ‘went native,’ you might say. He found a life in Bangladesh and stayed there and Rake kept going down that [other] path.”

This is a good idea. For a start, the movie would give Harbour a more prominent role, which he deserves. Seeing him and Hemsworth pair up is an exciting notion as they’re both top-notch action stars who have already proven that they have chemistry together. Furthermore, their characters could have a fun strange bedfellows dynamic that results in a buddy action flick.

The prequel idea also sounds like a team-up movie, which feels like a natural evolution for the franchise. Even though Extraction centers around Tyler’s relationship with the kid and sees him cooperate with some other mercenaries, the film mainly establishes Hemsworth’s character as a lone wolf warrior type. A follow-up movie that sees him engaging in warfare as part of a team makes sense.

Of course, Extraction also ends on an ambiguous note, probably with the intention of setting up a sequel at a later date. It’s unknown if Tyler lives or dies after falling from the bridge. But if there’s money to be made and a desire to make more movies, he won’t be dead. This is still an action franchise at the end of the day.

In the comics, Tyler survives and wakes up in a hospital. Russo and co. can always explore a similar resolution with the sequel. While movies and graphic novels are different mediums, Extraction and Ciudad have more or less the same premise. If they wanted him dead, the ending would have made his demise clear.

Should they opt to make a sequel instead of a prequel, Tyler can always accept a new mission in any other part of the world and take the viewer on another bloody, thrilling, rollicking ride. The good thing about being a mercenary-for-hire is that he can go anywhere and do anything, and this franchise can last for a few movies.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if Netflix produces a sequel and a prequel down the line. Russo seems more interested in the latter at the moment, but even if that’s the route they go, the first film has made it clear that there’s interest in exploring Tyler’s future as well.

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Kieran is a Contributor to the website you're currently reading. He also loves the movie Varsity Blues.