Summary
Mark Wahlberg has suggested thatShootersequel could happen, and it would replace one of Denzel Washington’s franchises if his conditions are met. It’s been 17 years since Wahlberg starred as Bob Lee Swagger in Antoine Fuqua’sShooter. The action movie had a mixed receptionearning 48% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and 80% from audienceswhile grossing $95 million at the box office off a $61 million budget. That performance kept any chance ofShooter 2happening right away much lower, butShooter’s popularity on streamingand cable has potentially changed the future.
The renewed success of the film is why thepossibility of Mark Wahlberg starring in aShootersequelhas become greater in recent years. Wahlberg is now open to the possibility as long as a few conditions are met. He mentioned wanting to make the movie with Paramount and Skydance specifically if it brings back Antoine Fuqua as the director and Michael Peña as Nick Memphis. AlthoughShooter 2is not yet officially in development, Wahlberg’s optimism about it happening is encouraging. And it could meanShooterreplaces Denzel Washington’s biggest franchise in a way.
Mark Wahlberg’s Sequel Update On Underrated $95M Movie Is Great News After 17 Years Of Blanks
Mark Wahlberg teases the possibility of a sequel to his 2007 action thriller film Shooter, which could continue the story of Bob Lee Swagger.
Shooter 2 Could Give Antoine Fuqua An Equalizer Replacement After Ending Denzel’s Franchise
Fuqua Directed All 3 Equalizer Movies
Mark Wahlberg’s condition of wanting Antoine Fuqua back to directShooter 2means thiscould become the director’s new main action franchise. Wahlberg and Fuqua have worked together sinceShooteron2 Guns, which co-starred Denzel Washington. It was immediately afterward that Fuqua and Washington embarked on a new journey together without Wahlberg. They went on to makeThe Equalizerin 2014, which launched an action trilogy starring Denzel that proved to be quite successful.
Fuqua and Washington lost theEqualizerfranchise withThe Equalizer 3endingthe franchise upon its release in 2023. While the two are still scheduled to work together in the future,Fuqua does not have another action franchise lined upat the moment.Shooter 2could be making progress at the perfect time then. Reteaming with Wahlberg to make a sequel toShooterafter all these years could be just what Fuqua needs to fill the hole he’s left with now thatThe Equalizer 4is not on the horizon.
All 3 Equalizer Movies Ranked From Worst To Best
The Equalizer movies have become a staple of the action genre, but some of the stories in the franchise undeniably work better than others.
Shooter 2 Can Be A Bigger Hit For Mark Wahlberg & Antoine Fuqua Now
It might seem like a risky bet on Paramount’s part to makeShooter 2after so much time has passed and considering the mediocre performance of the original movie. However, there is also a chance that the sequel would be much bigger than the first installment.Mark Wahlberg is a much bigger star nowadays, including on the action front, so that could be enough to help turnShooter 2into a box office hit if the budget is kept within a reasonable range. Marketing it as coming from the director of theEqualizertrilogy could boost audiences' interest too.
Mark Wahlberg and Antoine Fuqua last worked together on Infinite, a 2021 movie that released directly on Paramount+
Fuqua proved with theEqualizermovies that he can make action movies that do well at the box office. Each entry made over $190 million worldwide, which is twice as much asShootermade in 2007. It would not be unreasonable to think thatShooter 2could match the performance of theEqualizermovies and successfully revitalize Mark Wahlberg’s action franchise.
