Heat 2 is finally moving from long-running development talk into a real production plan, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Christian Bale set to star in Michael Mann’s sequel.
The project is scheduled to start shooting in November, according to four individuals with knowledge of the production who spoke to www.thewrap.com. Two of those individuals said the deals are already closed, while two others said the agreements are still in final negotiations but are expected to close.
Bale is attached to play Vincent Hanna, the LAPD Robbery Homicide detective originally played by Al Pacino, while DiCaprio is set to take on the role of Chris Shiherlis, the part played by Val Kilmer in the 1995 film.
What Heat 2 Is Building On
Mann will return as writer and director. The sequel began as a novel co-written by Mann and Meg Gardiner and released in 2022, and it is designed as both a prequel and a sequel to Heat.
The original film was based on L.A. Takedown, a television pilot Mann wrote and directed for NBC that was later aired as a movie in 1989 after the series was not picked up. The 1995 film later grossed $187.4 million on a $60 million budget and became one of the most respected heist movies ever made.
Cast And Character Search
| Role | Actor Being Sought Or Set | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Vincent Hanna | Christian Bale | Originally played by Al Pacino |
| Chris Shiherlis | Leonardo DiCaprio | Originally played by Val Kilmer |
| Wardell | Adam Driver | Being sought and in deep negotiations |
| Neil McCauley | Stephen Graham | In talks for the Robert De Niro role |
www.thewrap.com also learned that Adam Driver is being sought for the villain Wardell and is deep in negotiations. Stephen Graham is in talks to play Neil McCauley, the role Robert De Niro made famous in the first film.
Several actresses are also vying for the role of Sharlene, originally played by Ashley Judd, while other A-list names are circling the project as well.
A Bigger, Costlier Production
Amazon MGM Studios beat out other studios for the project after Warner Bros. dropped it over budget concerns. The budget had reached $200 million at Warner Bros., and two insiders said it is now closer to $170 million.
The production is also receiving nearly $40 million from the California tax incentive, and shooting is expected to span multiple continents. One insider described the scale as “Spartacus” with machine guns and “John Wick” times 1,000.
The action is expected to be larger than what was seen in the original film, including the famous climactic bank robbery and shootout that law enforcement officers still use as a training film.
Jerry Bruckheimer and United Artists’ Scott Stuber and Nick Nesbitt are producing. Shane Salerno and Eric Roth are executive producers, and both have worked with Mann for many years.
This also marks the first collaboration between Bruckheimer and Mann in 45 years, since Thief.
Why The Casting Matters
The challenge for the film was finding two leads who could match the screen presence of Pacino and De Niro from the original. DiCaprio and Bale were ultimately paired as the two performers seen as capable of carrying that kind of high-stakes confrontation.
Their casting also matters because they have never appeared in a movie together before, which adds another layer of intrigue to the project.
DiCaprio’s deal reportedly took six or seven months to put together because of how complex it was, and scheduling the other major roles added another layer of difficulty.
Mann and DiCaprio have been trying to work together for almost 30 years. Their closest attempt came with The Aviator, which Mann was originally meant to direct before passing on it after making back-to-back biopics The Insider and Ali.
The film is being positioned as a major theatrical event for Amazon MGM Studios, which recently scored a huge box-office win with Project Hail Mary and continues to push further into theatrical releases.
For DiCaprio, Heat 2 is now shaping up as his next film after Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another and Martin Scorsese’s Apple drama What Happens at Night. Bale is coming off The Bride! and will next appear in Amazon MGM’s Madden, where he plays Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis.
Umberto Gonzalez contributed reporting to this story.