5 reasons to be excited about 'Den of Thieves 2: Pantera'
Gerald Butler is back as the "big, bad lieutenant" in Christian Gudegast's follow-up to the 2018 cult hit.
Certain films grow a cult following. Think of it like planting crops out in the field and waiting for the magic to commence, and the time required to fulfill the task doesn’t waver between either one. Appreciating a movie can take time, just like waiting for a seed to transform into a tomato. Creative productions can slow-cook, asking a viewer to allow the ingredients (action, cast, filmmaking) to come together in a harmony that doesn’t reveal the time spent to be wasted.
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is a fine example of a film being powered by its most important audience: fans.
The original hit quickly out of the gate in 2018, pulling in more than half of its budget in the opening weekend. The studio sold it as a visceral, straight-up action film with extra machismo. Gerald Butler may be famous for those bronze Spartan abs from 300, but he has built his resume on being a convincing shitkicker with a badge or some law behind his name. Along with the Olympus Has Fallen series and a steady supply of gun-toting hero types, Butler has honed his craft.
Director Christian Gudegast plugged that into a loud speaker for Den of Thieves, which grossed $80 million worldwide on a spiffy $30 million budget. He gave the Scotland native a meaty cop role with little contempt and full-blown rage. Pulled straight from the book of Michael Mann’s Heat (D.O.T. is a red meat version), Big Nick is Al Pacino’s Vincent Hanna. A guy who plows through marriages like he does bad guys; slow and steady but sure.
Butler wasn’t the only one gifted with a big boost in Gudegast’s film. Den of Thieves may be 50 Cent’s strongest work on film, and Pablo Schreiber made a fine heel as the bank-robbing leader, Merriman. Think of them as Val Kilmer and Robert De Niro in Heat, respectively. O’Shea Jackson, son of Ice Cube, made a nice catalyst of sorts for the plot. The rest of the cast was filled in by “I know them” and “that one guy,” which helped Gudegast’s testosterone filter into your system faster.
Pantera arrives in theaters in a little over three weeks, kicking off the 2025 movie season with a big Nick bang! If Saint Nick brings cheer and presents to the masses, O’Brien brings cuffs or a body bag to his opponents. However, what if the cop turned gangster? Those are the words of Jackson’s Donnie, who made it out of the first film alive and well… but with Big Nick on his trail.
Here are five reasons to be excited about Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, instead of rolling your eyes at the exhaustion of another sequel. Check out the sequel first.
5) The first film ended with a helluva twist
Setting up Schreiber’s brainiac meathead as the supposed ringleader was clever, especially when audiences found out it was Donnie, the driver, who carried the master plan for the ultimate heist of the Federal Reserve. Right when the big gun battle that started on the freeway found its conclusion, audiences probably thought it was over and done except for a few calls and a coda.
“I’m in complete control of my environment.”
But Jackson’s fast car specialist was holding all the cards, even when he was getting beat up by the cops and thugs. A rewatch of the original reveals his savviness throughout the movie, as he becomes an informer inside the group of robbers for Butler’s L.A. County Sheriff’s office special crimes unit. Donnie worked both sides, and made off with all of the cash and Nick’s respect.
4) Pantera sets up an intriguing premise and sexy new locale
Instead of an entertaining but aimless adventure where the cop chases the thief all over Europe’s diamond district, Gudegast’s follow-up has Butler joining forces with Donnie for his big jewel heist. While I think Nick will turn the tables and end up trying to put his new partner in crime behind bars eventually, he will get rich first. Or, he goes down trying to be a gangster.
Another high-powered battle throughout the streets of Los Angeles (Atlanta in reality, mostly), things are changed up for the second round. Trading the frenzied beast of the west coast for a sexy European criminal jungle is like putting on a different kind of leather coat. The smell is the same, but the feel and appeal is somewhat different. Gudegast sprinkles the different aspects of Pantera here and there instead of heavy portions.
It’s like a good chef knowing how to use salt and pepper on a simple double cheeseburger, and a fast food reheater applying too much at all times.
3) One mind behind both films
Gudegast wrote and directed the 2018 original. He does the same tasks for Pantera, which gives the viewer a good sense of creative continuity. If a different director had come in like it did for Fast and Furious’ sequel, the excitement level would be lower. According to Butler, Christian lived and breathed this material for decades before finding the funding and right cast to bring it to life.
A sequel was in development soon after the success of the first film, but you still need a filmmaker to have something to say. Gudegast has made NOTHING else since the first Den of Thieves. He’s been working on what audiences will see next month. That shows me a one-track mind for all the right reasons. There was no rush.
2) Full throttle action is promised in the trailer
Changing styles of music after a hit album is bad for business. Experimentation should happen organically and definitely not with the second batch. Sticking with what works pleases an audience that left your first film satisfied with the goods. The preview shows cars flipping off high roads, gun fights between speeding cars, and black-coated men climbing up buildings.
In joining the other side of the street to make more money than the hunter, Big Nick finds himself in a whole new world of intrigue… and threats. The guy isn’t going to back down, and won’t take his eyes off Donnie. He’s a killer who wore a badge, so he will be able to fit into that new role. That will also produce some legit action.
Give the audience what they came for.
1) It’s arguably Butler’s best role
For all the people who whine about Butler’s lack of range or film role choices, they miss the juice of his appeal. Yes, he’s a legit action star. Like Alan Ritchson or Jason Statham, he looks good and convincing in this kind of role. Do we really want him to lose 40 pounds and play someone in a wheelchair? Would it appease the artsy film critics to have Gerry gain 50 pounds for a role in order to chase an Oscar and come up short like Stallone? Fuck that.
Big Nick is made for Butler. He gets to unleash the personality and swagger, which shoot just as quick and lethal as his weapons in the films. It is Butler who made the first one reach another level, because he dug two feet into that role and life. Give me some more of that, and let the whiners continue to under-appreciate a good action star.
I promise, he won’t start singing any opera music!
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, like its original, knows exactly what it is and has to do for its audience--and that’s why you should be excited to see it on January 10.