After half a decade, The Old Guard 2 is finally here, and director Victoria Mahoney has a good reason why the sequel took so long. The new Netflix epic stars Charlize Theron again, leading a troupe of immortal warriors against the forces of evil. The first Old Guard film was one of the first streaming hits of the COVID-19 pandemic, debuting in July 2020 to positive reviews and earning a sequel announcement almost immediately. However, for one reason or another, the second film in the franchise has taken some time to see the light of day.
In an exclusive conversation with The Direct, The Old Guard 2 director Victoria Mahoney clarified why the new streaming sequel took as long as it did to get off the ground, arriving on Netflix on Wednesday, July 2, 2025 (more than five years after the first movie). It turns out that the 2023 writers' and actors' strikes in Hollywood were mainly to blame for the sizable gap between the first two Old Guard films, as the aftereffects of that job action continue to be felt across the industry.
When asked about the gap between the two movies, Mahoney posited that, like many films going into production around the time The Old Guard 2 did, the film was "caught up" in the 2023 Hollywood strikes.
This pushed the film back, "to some degree, one year," as it fought for resources coming out of the well-covered labor dispute:
"Well, I think that we're not unique in that we got caught sort of, I believe our 'F1' friends, which, Graham Kelly, who worked for us on 'The Old Guard 2,' he worked on 'F1.' They were very close to us, neck and neck, as far as when they were filming right after us. And they're schedule, and then they went dark and the same [situation]. So we got caught up—A lot of us got caught up in the strike and it was, to some degree, one year for many of us. It's 18 months to some other people in the industry, certain productions."
She added that the five-year period was the time it took to "write it [and] the time it took to get the script approved," while also dealing with what she called "many other things that occurred in practical terms of what has to happen to get a movie up and running:"
"And so there were a number of reasons that we just got-and also, you know, the five years, the time it took to write it, the time it took to get the script approved, there's so many other things that occurred in in in practical terms of what has to happen to get a movie up and running and then out to audiences."
Elsewhere in the interview, Mahoney was prodded on how the franchise has evolved in the making of the second movie, with a particular focus being put on "[elevating] material:"
"What I love about any job I would do is, how do I elevate material? Otherwise I really shouldn't be there... So, when I have a script, anything, whatever it is for film, TV, but when I receive a script and then pulls me or compels me, part of what compels me is that I'm able to see through the eye and the needle in a way that everything comes visually. And so then I'm just pursuing these visuals that I already live and walk with. There's no part of the process that's unfamiliar to me... The point of me taking a job is that I believe my skill set, my subjective life experience, is equipped to help elevate that material."
The Old Guard 2 filmmaker added, "What I hope we did [was] take all the wonderful nuggets...[and] expand and grow them:"
"And then I set out about with everyone who's on the job to carry out such. So, I love the idea of taking everything that Gina put forward and Greg put forward in the first film, and then just growing it is I how I communicate. What I did, and what I want to do, and what I hope we did, is to just take all the wonderful nuggets of what was already presented and then just expand and grow them. And I believe that is the point of a second film. Otherwise, I don't know. Because when you're just repeating flat out like that's when audiences are pissed off. And I would be pissed off as an audience member."
The Old Guard 2 once again centers on Charlize Theron's Andromache (aka "Andy"), as she leads a group of super-powered warriors to take on a new threat, being the thought-to-be-dead immortal Discord (played by Uma Thurman) and her disciple Quỳnh (Vân Veronica Ngô). The new action film, based on Greg Rucka's beloved Old Guard graphic novel series, is now streaming on Netflix, hitting the service on Wednesday, July 2. Thus far, reviews for the second movie have been fairly middling, as the film sits at a paltry 32% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Will Fans Have To Wait Just as Long For The Old Guard 3?
Coming off this five-year wait for The Old Guard 2, the immediate question will almost certainly be: will the wait be as long for The Old Guard 3?
Firstly, a third movie in the Netflix superhero franchise has not yet been announced. It was not until January 2021 that The Old Guard 2 was first officially revealed (more than six months after the first film's release), so fans may be stuck waiting to find out whether a third movie will be made at all.
Director Victoria Mahoney revealed that she will not be coming back for another movie in the series and has not "been in the room on any conversations," likely meaning that Netflix has not begun cursory talks about a trilogy-capper.
Luckily, though, The Old Guard 3 can take its time and still come out quicker than the second film.
The biggest hurdle The Old Guard 2 faced was the entertainment industry shutting down right as it was about to start production. With a deal sorted between the studios, writers, and actors of Hollywood, no job action is likely in the near future.
This means the list of external forces that could potentially delay a third movie is one item shorter than it was last time around, which is a good sign for fans eager for more.
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