Speedscreenwriter Graham Yost offers an explanation as to whySpeed 3with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock hasn’t happened yet. Released in 1994, Jan de Bont’s original film features Reeves starring as LAPD officer Jack Traven, who works Bullock’s Annie, a civilian, to stop a terrorist from blowing up a city bus if it drives below 50 mph. While Bullock reprised her role forSpeed 2: Cruise Controlin 1997, Reeves didn’t return for the critically-panned sequel. Still, interest has remained for apotentialSpeed 3, and the project has gotten positive updates in recent months.
After the promising update onSpeed 3, Yost explains why the threequel hasn’t yet come to fruition during a recent interview withComicBook.com(viaCBR). The writer, who did not return forSpeed 2: Cruise Control, reveals that scheduling is one major factor, since both Reeves and Bullock are both massive, in-demand stars. Another factor, however, is thatthe 1997 sequel and the poor reception to that project killed enthusiasm for a third installment for at least one star, at least for a time. Check out Yost’s comment or watch the video below:
“There’s been talk and then [the actors] weren’t interested, but I wanted to or [producer] Mark Gordon [wanted to]. Trying to get the two of them in the same room let alone in the same movie is not easy. Mark Gordon I think is working on something with the two of them, but it’s not a Speed thing. There is also just the echo ofSpeed 2, andthat’s hard to shake off for Sandra Bullock. Keanu and I both feel, ‘Man, we dodged a bullet on that one.’ I used to say that I was not invited to a party I didn’t want to go to. And Keanu just managed to get out of it.”
What Speed 2’s Disastrous Reception Means For Speed 3
What Reeves & Bullock Have Said About Reuniting For A Third Movie
The firstSpeedhas a 95% critics' score onRotten Tomatoes, accompanied by a 77% audience score. The sequel, by contrast, has scores of only 4% and 16%, respectively. The sequel, which also stars Jason Patric and Willem Dafoe, was slammed for being a shell of its predecessor, offering up lackluster action and uninteresting characters. What’s more,the second film was also a major box office disappointment, grossing $164.5 million on a massive estimated budget of $160 million.
The originalSpeedwas a box office success, grossing $350.4 million on a $30 million budget.
It certainly wouldn’t be surprising then, ifSpeed 2’s performance soured the thought of a franchise return for both Reeves and Bullock. Time, however, has evidently softened the blow, as Reeves and Bullock addressedSpeed 3earlier this year and shared enthusiastic responses.“We’d freakin' knock it out of the park,“Reeves told the50 MPHpodcast. Bullock, too, expressed interest in working with Reeves again, either inSpeed 3or another project.
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As for whether a third film happens, 20th Century Studios executive Steve Asbell toldTHRlast week that it all depends on the quality of the script. “It’s got to be a greatidea,” he stressed. Getting the movie right is of such importance thatReeves and Bullock would “have to be a part of the development of that idea,“he says.Speed 3, then, still isn’t a sure thing.
Our Take On Speed 3
Should Another Movie Happen?
The firstSpeedremains an action classic, and Jack Traven, in addition toJohn Wickand Johnny Utah, remains one of Reeves' most iconic roles. That being said, that film is now 30 years old, andthere’s an argument to be made thatSpeed 3is better off not happening. AsCruise Controlsuggests, some titles are better off as one-offs. Still, however, if a strong idea can be developed, it could certainly be exciting to see Reeves and Bullock back in action in aSpeed 3.
Source:ComicBook.com(viaCBR)
Speed
Created by John de Bont and Graham Yost, Speed is a movie franchise that follows characters caught in precarious situations as passengers aboard vehicles set to crash and detonate. The first film stars Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, with Reeves playing the role of Officer Jack Traven as he hunts a dangerous bomber, finding himself stuck on a bus that will explode if it falls under a certain speed.
