Cronenberg and Mortensen in talks for EASTERN PROMISES 2

by Matt Holmes

Master director David Cronenberg and his new muse Viggo Mortensen have never made a sequel to any movie they have ever made but both enjoyed the 2007 gangster thriller Eastern Promises so much that they are scheduled soon to meet with screenwriter Steven Knight to discuss a follow-up. Although only a mild commercial hit ($56 million worldwide), Mortensen picked up an Academy Award nomination for his role as the heavily tattooed "undertaker" to the Russian Mafia and the picture was widely regarded as one of Cronenberg's best. In fact, it might be my favourite genre piece Cronenberg has ever made (no small statement) and without spoiling anything, has one of the truly great twists in the history of cinema because you just don't see it coming for so long. Longer I think, than the time you wait for Harry Lime in The Third Man. Cronenberg told MTV...

"We are moving forward with it," Cronenberg told MTV News in an exclusive chat. "We all are excited about the idea of doing a sequel." "We are going to have a meeting very soon between me, Steve Knight and Paul Webster to discuss what the script would be," Cronenberg said. "I have some very strong ideas about what I would like to see, but I would like to hear what they have to say as well. And then after that, if all goes well, Steve goes away and writes a great script. If we all like it, we make it."
Does "we all" also include Naomi Watts and Vincent Cassell? Cronenberg with this movie and also A History of Violence has pushed himself into a new genre and in my opinion has freshened up his filmography and put himself in a position to tell larger stories than he ever did before. We know he is preparing to shoot late Summer, the Robert Ludlum adaptation The Matarese Circle with Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington which will be his first ever studio blockbuster. Could the temptation for him to make a Godfather-esque series of movies with Viggo Mortensen take his attention away post-Ludlum? This is one sequel I would love to see.
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Matt Holmes is the co-founder of What Culture, formerly known as Obsessed With Film. He has been blogging about pop culture and entertainment since 2006 and has written over 10,000 articles.