For a few years now, fans have been anxiously awaiting Face/Off 2, the sequel to John Woo’s beloved 1997 film. The production took a massive step forward back in 2021 when Adam Wingard was hired to direct and co-write the script with Simon Barrett. From there, progress on the film seemingly moved slowly. Now, in an unfortunate turn of events, the long-gestating sequel has hit a behind-the-scenes setback. However, this development could possibly serve as good news for a reboot fans have been asking about for a while now.
How Did Face/Off 2 Hit A Setback?
It’s been reported that Adam Wingard has officially exited his post as director of the Face/Off follow-up. While confirming the news, THR did not provide specific details explaining why Wingard was no longer attached to the film, only saying that it’s now an open assignment at Paramount Pictures. This marks a serious blow for those who’ve been waiting for this sequel to be realized and, as of right now, it’s unclear if the studio has ideas about who to bring in to take the job.
Arguably one of Woo’s most beloved movies, Face/Off is a sci-fi thriller that tells the story of an FBI agent (John Travolta) and a terrorist (Nicolas Cage), who swap faces and identities due to an intricate surgery. The film has arguably received more notoriety in the years since its release. Paramount initially announced in 2019 that a reboot with a new cast would be produced. However, the movie was confirmed to be a true sequel by the time Wingard boarded the project.
Wingard has been carving out a lane for himself as a filmmaker over the past several years, having made the jump from smaller horror films to massive blockbusters. His latest two films are 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong and 2024’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which are both installments in Warner Bros. MonsterVerse franchise. Wingard’s next feature is the upcoming A24 movie Onslaught, which is currently in post-production. While it’s unfortunate that he’s departed the aforementioned legacy sequel, he can turn his attention elsewhere.
There’s A Reboot That Could Now Get Some Significant Attention
Not too long after Adam Wingard joined Face/Off 2, he landed another major movie gig. It was revealed that Wingard would helm a big-screen reboot of the classic animated series ThunderCats. At the time, Wingard professed his love for the original show (which debuted in 1985 and aired 130 episodes across four seasons). The filmmaker even revealed that he “blew” the vast majority of his 10th grade year due to writing a screenplay based on the beloved property.
As far as the general public knows, Wingard is still attached to direct ThunderCats. So, with Face/Off no longer on his plate and Onslaught being finished up, the Blair Witch helmer may have more time to devote to his TV show adaptation. That’s just a theory, of course, based on what the general public knows about Wingard’s work schedule for the foreseeable future. Still, there’s certainly a possibility that he may now be in a place in which he can really dig in and get his TC reboot off the ground.
When it comes to Face/Off 2, its status remains somewhat unclear. The plan has been to get Cage and Travolta to reprise their roles, and Cage hyped up the project a few years ago. At this point, given the film has lost Wingard as its director, fans will just have to wait and see what lies ahead for this particular sequel. Likewise, fans of ThunderCats will have to wait and see if the project does gain some momentum.
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