Almost a decade after its release, Sicario remains one of the most popular and influential films of the 2010s. The crime thriller received well-deserved critical acclaim upon its release in 2015 and was instrumental in elevating the careers of many of its cast and crew, especially Taylor Sheridan, who made his screenwriting debut with the film. The film’s success meant that it was quickly followed by a sequel, Sicario: Day of the Soldado, but the second entry was considerably less well received.
Despite this, interest in Sicario 3 has remained strong, partially because some fans hope that the series can conclude on a stronger note than the sequel. And cast and crew members have repeatedly noted that a third entry is in the early stages of development, but the apparent lack of significant progress seven years after Day of the Soldado casts doubt over whether it will ever actually be completed and released. Part of the problem seems to be plain difficulty in getting key members of the cast and creative team to return at the same time given their busy schedules.
Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Sicario’ Had a Stacked Cast and Crew

Sicario follows FBI agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), who, after discovering horrific evidence of mass murder by a Mexican drug cartel, joins a multi-agency law enforcement task force to combat the organization, headed by Department of Defense advisor Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) and the mysterious Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro). Although initially partially convinced of the necessity of Graver and Alejandro’s extreme, even illegal, tactics due to the severity of the crimes they’re dealing with, Kate is outraged to discover that Graver is actually a CIA agent and Alejandro, a mercenary who alternates between working for the agency and a rival Colombian cartel, and that they plan to assassinate the leader of the Mexican organization. Kate is absent from Day of the Soldado, which instead features Alejandro clashing with Graver and the U.S. government over how to proceed when a mission involving the abduction of a drug lord’s daughter goes awry.
The first film features an assortment of some of the most popular names in Hollywood, both in front of the camera and behind-the-scenes. It was released at a time when Blunt’s star appeal was quickly rising and contributed to her current status as one of Hollywood’s most popular leading ladies. New viewers and those who haven’t seen the film for a while may also be surprised to see Daniel Kaluuya play an important supporting role as Kate’s partner a few years before Get Out and Black Panther catapulted him to stardom. After being nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay for his work, Sheridan’s next two scripted films, Hell or High Water and Wind River (the latter of which he also directed), accrued similar levels of acclaim before he established his massive ongoing television empire centered around Yellowstone and his ever-expanding Western franchise.

But while Sheridan has become one of the most prolific writers in the industry, Sicario is also distinctly a product of director Denis Villeneuve’s unique style. Many of the more critical appraisals of Day of the Soldado describe Villeneuve and Blunt’s absences as significant contributors to the lesser quality of the sequel, with del Toro himself even admitting that he was initially unsure about acting in the film without the former directing. Although he has remained firm that the upcoming Dune: Messiah will be the last film he directs in the sci-fi series based on Frank Herbert’s novels, Villeneuve, who is now one of the most influential and acclaimed filmmakers in the world, is already publicly attached to another ambitious sci-fi adaptation, Rendezvous with Rama, as well as a Cleopatra film, and has reportedly been in negotiations to helm an adaptation of non-fiction book Nuclear War: A Scenario, in addition to any possible projects that are as yet unrevealed. This makes it hard to imagine him being available to make another Sicario film in the near future, let alone at a time when Blunt, del Toro, and Brolin are all also able to do so.
‘Sicario 3’ Seems To Be Stuck in Development

Image via Lionsgate

But concerns about the casting or actual filming of a possible third film are unfortunately premature. Fans were given a few brief updates about the status of the threequel last year that confirmed that, if anything, it’s still very early in the writing phase, despite some prior indications to the contrary. In an interview with Josh Horowitz, Blunt stated that she hasn’t seen or heard anything “firm” about a third film being made, leading her to believe that rumors about production being closer to actually happening are “hearsay”. Brolin gave a more optimistic and detailed account, saying that producer Molly Smith is still eager to make a third entry. However, he also noted that while Christopher McQuarrie, known for his involvement with The Usual Suspects and the Mission: Impossible franchise, was briefly involved in the development process, that’s no longer the case, and he is uncertain what (if any) involvement Sheridan has with the project.

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With none of the major players looking to become significantly less busy anytime soon, there’s an unfortunately decent chance that we don’t get a third movie. While it’s understandable why fans want to see more of the characters and world of the films, this actually may be for the best. Day of the Soldado did leave some interesting possibilities open for future installments, such as Alejandro and even Graver becoming more opposed to the government’s corrupt tactics, which could lead one or both to actually ally themselves with Kate against the system. But the conclusive nature of the original’s ending and the difference in quality between the two films also suggest that Sicario may have been a movie that would have been best left without a sequel.

Sicario

Release Date

September 17, 2015

Runtime

122 minutes

Director

Denis Villeneuve

Producers

Basil Iwanyk, Edward McDonnell, Ellen H. Schwartz, Molly Smith, Thad Luckinbill, Stacy Perskie