It has been 15 years since the groundbreaking superhero Columbia Pictures film Hancock, starring Will Smith, Charlize Theron, and Jason Bateman, was released. Although the film, which was directed by Peter Berg, got mixed reviews, people were eventually drawn in by its interpretation of the superhero genre. Even though Hancock 2 had clear potential to be a sequel, it never happened, leaving fans confused.
Berg, in an interview, blamed the cast, including Smith, for the sequel’s failure to take off. The filmmaker thought that when you have a producing team with strong personalities like Smith, Bateman, James Lassiter, and Akiva Goldsman, you are going to have a terrible development deadlock.
Despite the shortcomings of the sequel, Theron expressed a strong desire to reprise her role as Mary Embrey.
Peter Berg Held Will Smith Partially Responsible For Hancock Sequel’s Failure To Take Off
With the release of Hancock, which was directed by Peter Berg and starred Will Smith in the lead role, superhero movies took a new turn in 2008. With each passing year, fans have been holding onto a glimmer of hope that more details about Hancock’s sequel will become available. But eventually, even the most dedicated followers start to doubt if Hancock 2 will ever materialize.
Any film that does that well is almost guaranteed a sequel, especially if it follows the superhero genre. However, Peter Berg believed that when your producing team includes strong personalities like Smith, James Lassiter, and Akiva Goldsman, you have yourself a painful deadlock in terms of development. The director In 2009, Berg told Digital Spy:
“There are so many cooks in that particular kitchen that are so busy and Will’s kind of taken time off to be with his kids and his kids are now making all kinds of films and there are so many people involved in that from Will to his partner James Lassiter to Akiva [Goldsmith] to Michael Man and myself. To get us all in the same room where we can talk and then agree on anything? You’ll never meet a group of people who will have a harder time agreeing on anything.”
Thus, it appears that the largest obstacle has been scheduling. In 2012, Berg revealed (via WhatCulture):
“We’ve been talking about the sequel between us, Will Smith, [producer] Michael Mann and [producer] Akiva Goldsman and myself. We’re all interested, but we literally just have trouble getting into the same room at the same time… So I think it will happen, it’s just a question of timing.”
Charlize Theron is Itching to Get Back in Hancock 2
Charlize Theron is eager and prepared to take on Hancock 2. The 2008 film version featured a superhero played by Will Smith who had lost interest in protecting people and was considered a bit of a unique take on the superhero genre. Now, more than a decade later, Theron is game to turn this into a franchise. She acknowledged that there were conversations a few years ago. She shared the following (via Movie Web):
“You know, for a while we [talked about a sequel]. I think closer to when the movie came out, but not in recent years, no. We’ll be superheroes with our walkers, you know. And I’ll still go! I’ll still make that movie, I would do it in a heartbeat.”
Getting the “ideas” for the story was also one of the reasons. When the movie was released on DVD, Will Smith discussed the slow progress of the sequel’s development. He informed the Toronto Star:
“The ideas aren’t as developed for [‘Hancock 2’] yet as they are for [‘I Am Legend 2’], but we’re building out an entire world.”
The reaction to Hancock’s release was a little bit uneven. However, it made $629 million at the box office, making it the fourth highest-grossing film of 2008. Thus, Hancock 2 may prove to be profitable with the correct concept.
Stream Hancock on FuboTV
