Free Guy 2 could be on the way, so what can fans expect?
2021's Free Guy saw Ryan Reynolds as Guy, a non-playable character who became self-aware in the world's most immersive video game, Free City.
For the most part, fans enjoyed the first movie, as it earned 81% on Rotten Tomatoes and grossed $331 million at the worldwide box office (albeit during the height of the global COVID-19 pandemic).
The future of the franchise remains unclear; however, given the limitless potential of Free Guy's digital frontier, there is always the chance Disney double dips with another film.
Will Free Guy 2 Ever Release?
Free Guy 2 has not been officially announced by Disney and 20th Century Studios, but that is not to say it is never going to happen.
Director Shawn Levy recently updated fans (via Collider) on the project, noting that it is "in development," and was "something that Disney and Fox want badly:"
“It’s still in development. I don’t know if it’s in the cards, but it is very much still in development. It’s something that Disney and Fox want badly.”
Teasing the idea of doing more in the Free Guy world, the filmmaker hinted to Digital Spy that they "have bandied about and flirted with some ideas" for a potential sequel, so the wheels seem to be in motion:
"We're lucky, a couple of people I've got the opportunity to work with multiple times, and I'm hoping that if not in another 'Free Guy' movie, it's in another movie or another form. I guess the short answer is yes. I've made things that launched franchises and I've made enough things to know that you just don't know the outcome. We have bandied about and flirted with some ideas."
This comes after Reynolds and Levy (Stranger Things and Deadpool 3) first commented on the subject of a sequel in February 2022.
In a conversation with Collider, the pair remarked "We loved Free Guy" and "if we can crack that sequel, that's something that might be very fun to make together:"
“We loved 'Free Guy.' We were thrilled that 'Free Guy' was as successful as it was, and particularly as an original movie at a time where few get made and even fewer are hits. So that was gratifying. And if we can crack that sequel, that's something that might be very fun to make together.”
Levy also let slip he had "gotten [a] phone call" from Disney about a potential sequel, but would not get into specifics:
“I've definitely gotten that phone call. I don't know how to quantify the how much, but that exact phone call that you just basically paraphrased, that's a call. I've gotten a few of those in the past several months. So there is definitely real interest there. But to Ryan's point, we knew. We had such a clear idea of the tone, the story, the details of 'Free Guy,' and we both made a few sequels in our lives, and so we know how hard it is to make a worthy one. And when we feel confident that's the kind we'll make, then we'll make it.”
And that seems to be the mentality here. Both Reynolds and Levy do not want to rush a Free Guy 2.
That is not to say it will never happen, the pair just want to make sure they are "not going to mess with a good thing unless [they] can make a great thing" (via a December 2021 interview with Collider):
"I don't know if it's in the cards, but it is very much still in development. It's something that Disney and Fox want badly. I really try to not make sequels that don't deserve to be. And it's why I didn't move forward with the 'Real Steel' sequel because I didn't feel we had a second movie that could match or top the first. I'm holding 'Free Guy' to that same standard. We are still hearing ideas, developing ideas, expounding on ideas. But I would say that in the time that's passed since 'Free Guy' came out, the love for that movie has become more and more clear to Ryan and I, anecdotally, on sidewalks, in the press. So we're not going to mess with a good thing unless we can make a great thing."
Is Ryan Reynolds Cast in Free Guy 2?
As it stands, Ryan Reynolds is the only cast member from the first movie to have his name attached.
Seeing as director Shawny Levy is game to work on a second Free Guy and the pair's budding partnership over the past couple of years (The Adam Project, Free Guy, and Deadpool 3), if Levy was going to return it certainly feels like Reynolds would be close in tow.
Star Ryan Reynolds told Variety in March 2023, “[if] there is the potential to do a sequel to Free Guy," and he would "would love [to do] it:"
“There is the potential to do a sequel to ‘Free Guy,’ which would be fun. I would love it. But also like, does everything fucking have to be a sequel? I don’t know. Sometimes it’s OK to just do a movie and have it kick ass and then everyone go home.”
He added however, there's some "push and pull" with a sequel, but they are "still talking about it:"
“So you know, there’s a bit of a push and pull there, resisting the urge to just immediately say, ‘Ohh, doing a sequel will validate the first one.’ No, the first movie validates the first one and then you can leave it at that. So I don’t know, we’re still talking about it.”
Other names from the first film that could potentially return include Reynolds' Free Guy co-star Jodie Comer as Millie, aka Molotovgirl, Joe Keery's enterprising programmer Keys, and potentially even the villain of the first movie, Taika Waititi's Antwan.
What Could Happen in Free Guy 2?
Following the events of Free Guy, there are plenty of directions the franchise could go with a sequel.
After Guy was able to free the digital denizens of Free City by the end of the first movie, an interesting direction the sequel could go take would be dealing with the ongoing debate surrounding AI and the question of 'are artificial intelligences actually alive.
The first film thrived with its commentary on the world of video games and digital avatars, so why not tackle another timely subject given the rise of AI in the modern world?
Something else fans could likely expect from a Free Guy sequel would be even more Easter eggs from across pop culture. Reynolds previously revealed there was one thing he thought was missing from the first movie, that being "Thor's hammer," after Free Guy got to use lightsabers, Hulk fists, and even Captain America's shield thanks to the Disney/Fox acquisition:
“I do regret that we didn’t do something with Thor’s hammer... at that point, they had already made a tiny little purchase of Fox Studios, so we were technically a Disney movie anyway.”
So if/when Reynolds' guy is heard from again, one can assume he will sport the God of Thunder's signature weapon at one point or another.
Free Guy 2 has no official release date or formal announcement from Disney.
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