“SAS: Red Notice,” the action thriller that became a hit for U.K. platform Sky Cinema in 2021, is getting a sequel, with Laurence Malkin returning to write and now direct the feature.
Creative details are currently under wraps, but development funding for the sequel was provided by Sky Original Films. The film will be executive produced by Sky’s director of original film, Julia Stuart. Sky will co-finance and take all rights for the U.K. and Ireland. Production financing will come from Ashland Hill Media Finance, led by Joe Simpson, Simon Williams, and Jonathan Bross.
“The global success of the first film inspired me to amplify the SAS universe and deepen our understanding of covert operations,” said Malkin. “The use of psychopaths, both good and bad, was something we touched upon in the first film. This time we’ll get inside the minds of these unique operators and deliver even more visceral action sequences, elevating everything to a whole other level. It will be a big, proper action film, with a deeply psychopathic twist.”
Overseeing the sequel’s production will be Daniel Kresmery, who runs Hungary’s Hero Squared together with partner Jonathan Halperyn, Share Stallings (“Death at a Funeral,” “Kill Me Three Times”), Tunde Bodnar (“SAS: Red Notice”) and David Crabtree (“The Critic,” “The Lost King”), all of whom participated in the various test shoots and locations scouting.
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“’SAS: Red Notice’ delivered a fantastic result, and we couldn’t be happier with Larry’s new script. It’s shaping up to be even more ambitious than the first film and promises to be exactly what the market is looking for in the elevated, action genre with worldwide appeal,” said Stuart. “Following our successful theatrical releases for ‘The Beekeeper’ and ‘Ferrari,'”’ we know our audience is hungry for premium blockbuster fare and want to give ‘SAS: Red List’ the broad and robust support it deserves.”
Simpson, managing partner at Ashland, added: “Simon and I have worked with Larry across many films on various continents, and we’re hugely excited to embark on this journey with him as a filmmaker. Not only has his new script amplified the SAS franchise, it provides more insight into the characters he knows so well. We’ve also seen the materials and test shoots and love how they hint at the wider world to come. The market needs bigger, ambitious action films and this one has a unique concept at its core: Covert psychopathic operations.”
