The first reviews for “Charlie’s Angels” have roundly praised writer and director Elizabeth Banks’ semi-reboot of the adored 1970s television series and early 2000s movies for being a laugh out loud funny, throughly entertaining and genuinely uplifting and crowd-pleasing blockbuster.
But, as is the case with pretty much every new release from a major studio, movie fans are already starting to wonder, “Will there be a ‘Charlie’s Angels 2?’”
Of course, the “Charlie’s Angels” box office figures will dictate the answer to that question, but during a recent, extensive piece from Entertainment Weekly on the film, the origins of the reboot make it pretty clear that Sony Pictures are hoping this will lead to at least one or two sequels.
That’s because Doug Belgrad, who is one of the producers on “Charlie’s Angels” and was previously the president of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, revealed that back in 2014, the studio pinpointed the franchise as a “beloved” brand that could be mined for future use. This was in the wake of Sony executives realizing that “the business was transitioning to a franchise-first model.”
That clearly means that the studio are hoping to follow Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska’s Angels on more adventures.
However, when quizzed about her next project by The Guardian, Banks said she was still trying to “figure out” what she was going to do next.
There’s a good reason why Banks might be keeping her cards to her chest, though.
During her discussion with Entertainment Weekly, the filmmaker was asked about the pressure on female directors for their films to perform at the box office. This provoked Banks to say that the men in charge of the studios need to be asked, “Why won’t you let us make these movies and why don’t you give us as much money?”
This point rings especially true when you consider that Banks was reportedly given just $48 million to make “Charlie’s Angels,” while Tim Miller was given a $190 million budget for last week’s “Terminator: Dark Fate.”
If “Charlie’s Angels” does succeed financially then a follow-up will inevitably be green-lit, which means that Banks will be able to leverage for even more money, something that is rightfully on her mind and she would obviously deserve.
But does “Charlie’s Angels” actually set-up a sequel?
Warning: SPOILERS follow.
Absolutely it does. In fact, “Charlie’s Angels” is actually an origin story for how Stewart’s Sabina, Balinska’s Jane and Scott’s Elena come together to become Angels. While Sabina is already an Angel, and we learn that Jane is a former MI-6 agent, we witness Elena turn from a vulnerable scientist into a hard-nosed and dangerous fighter over the course of the movie.
Then, in the credits, we see Elena go through an extensive training sequence, where she is put through the ringer by Aly Raisman, Ronda Rousey, Chloe Kim, Danica Patrick and Laverne Cox, before meeting up with Jane and Sabina and officially becoming one of “Charlie’s Angels.”
