Margot Robbie’s Ocean’s Prequel Just Suffered A Big Setback, But It’s Not All Bad News

Fans of the Ocean’s franchise have two upcoming movies to look forward to from Warner Bros. Not only are George Clooney, Matt Damon and other actors from the original trilogy getting back together for the long-awaited Ocean’s 14, there’s also that Ocean’s prequel that Margot Robbie is starring in and producing. Unfortunately, that latter project just suffered a big setback, but that also came with a positive update.

Let’s start with the bad news first: Deadline reports that Lee Isaac Chung will no longer direct the Ocean’s prequel. The Minari filmmaker’s exit was described by a Warner Bros. spokesperson as a “an amicable split due to creative differences,” and the studio’s experience working with “has only deepened our enthusiasm to collaborate on future projects together.” The search for a new director is now underway, but it’s hard to say when we’ll learn who will take over from the Oscar-nominated Chung.

So obviously losing a director isn’t great, but the good news is this doesn’t seem like it’s a sign that the Ocean’s prequel is on its way to being shelved. Deadline also mentions that in the midst of Paramount acquiring Warner Bros., this project “remains an important project to get up and running.” So unless there are further problems, Margot Robbie’s Ocean’s prequel still has a bright future ahead of it, and hopefully enough progress will be made in 2026 that allows it to begin filming sometime next year.

It’s worth noting that Lee Isaac Chung isn’t the first director to leave the prequel. When it was first announced in May 2022, the plan was for Austin Powers’ Jay Roach to helm this feature set several decades before the events of Ocean’s Eleven. But that didn’t end up working out, nor did the first choice for Margot Robbie’s co-star. Had things gone according to the original plan, we would have had the Barbie duo of Robbie and Ryan Gosling back together.

Instead, as of October 2025, Bradley Cooper was in talks to take Gosling’s place, as he reportedly had a productive meeting with Lee Isaac Chung and has been wanting to work with Margot Robbie for years. Carrie Solomon wrote the most recent draft of the Ocean’s prequel’s screenplay, but the only plot details we know about the project is that it will be set in the 1960s. Robbie is producing through her LuckyChap banner.

In the meantime, Margot Robbie can currently be seen on the 2026 movies schedule playing Catherine Earnshaw in Wuthering Heights. With the way things are going, I’m guessing that Ocean’s 14 will begin rolling cameras before the prequel, but we here at CinemaBlend will keep you updated either way. Twisters, Chung's most recent movie, can be streamed with a Peacock subscription.