As another case of a long awaited sequel finding its home on the 2025 movie schedule, The Accountant 2 brought Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal’s badass Brothers Wolff back for everyone’s enjoyment. However, landing on the right story to inspire such an occasion is apparently is much harder than just delivering a funnier than expected Affleck performance. You can thank director Gavin O’Connor for bringing that point home as of late, as the helmer highlighted a piece of this burgeoning franchise’s formula that some may take for granted: its mysteries.

Chatting with IndieWire in regards to the film our review for The Accounant 2 claims "expertly balanced violence and heart," the returning director admitted that it’s not those kills that drive these movies. Rather, it’s whatever financial quandary Christian finds himself investigating, which leads to these sorts of problems:

As a fan of The Accountant, and a fiction writer myself, I feel Gavin O’Connor’s words in my heart and my hands. It’s the price one has to pay for an intriguing pot boiler that keeps people involved, especially when your Prime Video subscription bound protagonist is akin to a neurodivergent superhero/detective. Keep in mind, Christian Wolff could solve a jigsaw puzzle with the pieces flipped over, so that’s kind of a huge bar to meet each time out.

I’m beginning to see why O’Connor has stated elsewhere that he not only has a potential idea for The Accountant 3 already taking shape, but that Anna Kendrick would play a part in this hypothetical scenario. Seeing as crafting the plots and the puzzles is an intensive process, the earlier you can start, the better.

I can only imagine what sort of direction needs to be written to create the typical "assembling the evidence" sequence in one of these pictures. With The Accountant 2’s impressive RT score outdoing the Wolff family origin story, this could be a more prudent move than one would think. Of course, there’s still plenty of mystery for fans to untangle at the current moment while we wait for the numbers to add up.

Not only can you revisit The Accountant's ever relevant tale through Prime Video’s vast library, you can also head to a theater near you and see The Accountant 2 unfold right in front of you. If anything, we kind of owe both Gavin O’Connor and Bill Dubuque that much, as those "fucking" plots aren’t being written for nothing.

While the film industry is dominated by major franchises and cinematic universes, some properties end up growing more accidentally. Case in point: Ben Affleck's burgeoning property The Accountant, which began with the original 2016 film and continues with its first sequel. That blockbuster included an outstanding and unique performance by Ben Affleck as protagonist Christian Wolff, thrilling action, as well as some truly mind-blowing twists. Fans have been calling for a sequel for years, and after nearly a decade, The Accountant 2 is finally approaching theaters. And I've got to say, I might like it even more than its predecessor.

The Accountant 2 is set years after the events of the 2016 original, with Affleck's Christian Wolff once again involved in a high stakes adventure. He's contacted by Agent Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson, reprising her role from the original), and tasked with solving a murder. But this time around he's not doing the job alone... even if he wants to.

One of the big twists of the original movie was that Jon Bernthal's character Braxton was actually Christian's brother. With that reveal out of the way, director Gavin O'Connor and writer Bill Dubuque put these siblings at the front of the story and allow audiences to watch as they try to connect in as a violent buddy duo. And it's in this dynamic that I think the movie is surpasses the success of first film.

Ben Affleck’s Christian Wolff is endlessly charming.

Ben Affleck has had a long and wildly successful career as an actor, so it's well known that he's able to pull of moving and memorable performances. And while I loved his take on classics like Good Will Hunting and his jaded, hulking take on Batman, Christian Wolff is one of his very best characters. Despite the years in between Accountant films, he is able to perfectly slip back into character for the long-awaited sequel.

In both films, Wolff is portrayed as neurodivergent, with his specific form of autism offering him an analytical mind a unique set of skills. While he's wildly effective and a total badass, vulnerability and charm comes in the ways he struggles socially. Affleck's first scene in The Accountant 2 sees Christian attempt speed dating, with the audience treated to a montage of foibles.

While Affleck is known for playing badasses (and indeed, Christian knows his way around a shoot out), it's the way that he portrays the character's flaws that make him so lovable. Much of this happens in the way that he interacts with Jon Bernthal's Braxton. But more about that particular dynamic later.

The action and twists deliver and result in The Accountant 2 flying by.

In addition to Ben Affleck's acclaimed performance as the title character, The Accountant is primarily known for its plot twists and thrilling action. Gavin O'Connor once again hit it out of the park in this new chapter in both regards, and the movie's 132-minute runtime really moves quickly as a result.

There are a ton of action pieces in The Accountant 2, both gunfights and dizzying hand to hand combat. And while the fight choreography is like a thrilling dance, the violence feels very real and anxiety-induing. Characters, including major returning ones, take a serious beating as a result, allowing each of these sequences to have palpable stakes. And after one big plot twist in the opening sequence, it's clear that no one is safe.

The murder mystery at the center of this movie's story ends up connecting to a much larger ring of criminal activity including human trafficking. O'Connor and screenwriter Bill Dubuque methodically peel back this story in a way that's wildly satisfying by the time the third act comes to a close. Fear not fans of the original, there are still twists this time around, – and by the end of the film, all of its storylines are tied up with a neat bow.

The sibling story between Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal was genuinely moving.

While The Accountant 2 follows a giant mystery that extends across multiple countries, the real heart of the story is about the relationship between Affleck's Christian and Bernthal's Braxton. It's revealed early into the runtime that they haven't seen each other since the events of the first film, allowing audiences to pick up where they left off and see how the brothers' relationship works from the inside.

While Braxton is a brash and violent killer, he wants his family's approval like so many of us. While the brothers butt heads pretty immediately in the movie, we slowly learn just how hurt Bernthal's character is that his brother never reached out. He clearly wants a deeper relationship, while Christian has trouble understanding what it is his brother needs from him.

Of course, this storyline plays out as the duo are kicking ass and taking names, including some truly dazzling shoot-out sequences. Affleck and Bernthal are known for being excellent in these types of scenes, but they seemingly brought just as much care to the moments of stillness between Christian and Braxton. These two actors are really some of the best in the business, and they're able to expertly pivot between action, heart, and comedy throughout The Accountant 2.

Ben Affleck’s got quite a few movies in the works, both as an actor and with his production company, but one of the most anticipated Affleck projects is the long-awaited sequel, The Accountant 2. The two-time Oscar winner is reprising his role as Christian Wolff for the 2025 movie calendar, and critics had the opportunity to screen the action thriller ahead of its April 25 debut in theaters. Let’s see if we want to make this movie part of our weekend plans.

First reactions from The Accountant 2’s SXSW premiere praised the expansion of Jon Bernthal’s role as the title character’s brother Braxton, as the two team up to track down a murderer. Overall, did Ben Affleck avoid the pitfall of making a sequel? Critic Richard Crouse seems to think so, giving it 4 out of 5 stars and writing:

Kim Newman of Empire, meanwhile, rates the upcoming action movie 3 stars out of 5, echoing the above sentiment that the “impossibly intricate storyline” is just a way to let the kill-crazy good guys loose on thugs who deserve what they’ve got coming. Newman continues:

Nearly every review I’ve read mentions Ben Affleck’s character line-dancing, so I wonder if that alone is worth the price of admission? Brian Truitt of USA TODAY says The Accountant 2 isn’t quite as good as its 2016 predecessor, but the dynamic between the two brothers and the filmmakers’ willingness to explore an autistic character make this a satisfying watch. The critic gives it 2.5 out of 4 stars, writing:

Jake Coyle of the AP also rates it 2.5 stars out of 4, saying that while Ben Affleck’s “Rain Man shtick” always feels forced, once Jon Bernthal shows up, the sequel clicks into place. Coyle continues:

I can definitely get behind “knowingly silly,” but AV Club’s Jacob Oller doesn’t find much to like in this sequel, which he says buries the rapport of its leads in chaotic action, troubling worldviews and generic plotting. It also doesn’t handle the many facets of neurodiversity delicately, Oller says, writing:

While there are some complaints amongst the critics, the movie has compiled a 79% Fresh score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. It sounds like this sequel has dialed down on the numbers from The Accountant (which can be streamed with a Max subscription) in order to ramp up the brotherly love aspect. If you’d like to see more from this neurodivergent ass-kicker, The Accountant 2 hits theaters on Friday, April 25.

Movie lovers at the South by Southwest are getting a first look at plenty of highly anticipated projects coming to the 2025 movie calendar, and that includes the next project from Ben Affleck — The Accountant 2. The upcoming action movie is a sequel to the 2016 flick that again centers around Affleck’s autistic accountant Christian. Matt Damon showed up to support his BFF at the SXSW premiere in Texas, but what are audiences saying?

In addition to Ben Affleck, Jon Bernthal co-stars as Christian’s estranged brother Braxton. Cynthia Addai-Robinson and J. K. Simmons reprise their roles from the first film as well, though the trailer confirms a big character death. Ranking the movie 8 out of 10, Ryan Scott of SlashFilm says The Accountant 2 is funnier than the first movie but not devoid of heart, and it makes Affleck’s character more three dimensional. In short, it improves on its predecessor in every way, Scott says, writing:

Nate Richard of Collider also gives the movie an 8 out of 10, praising the chemistry between Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal and the action scenes that easily one-up anything from The Accountant. As for Affleck’s portrayal of a man on the autism spectrum, Richard notes that the sequel makes a concerted effort to represent neurodiversity without slipping into stereotypes. The critic says:

Lovia Gyarkye of THR agrees that the stars’ portrayal of the brothers is what makes The Accountant 2 so successful, and that especially fans of the first movie will be rooting for this fraternal pair. Gyarkye continues:

Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com, however, was less impressed with the movie overall, giving it 2 out of 4 stars. Tallerico agrees that the exploration of Christian’s relationship with brother Brax is when The Accountant 2 is at its best, but Gavin O’Connor doesn’t put the same amount of effort into making us care about the rest of the plot. In the critic’s words:

Christian Zilko of IndieWire grades the movie a C+, writing that there’s no real reason for this sequel to exist nine years later, but it improves on the first by giving Jon Bernthal a bigger piece of the pie. The Accountant 2 offers more laughs and more heart, Zilko concludes, writing:

We’ve still got a while to wait before The Accountant 2 hits theaters on Friday, April 25, so if you want to catch up on what you missed the first time around, The Accountant can be streamed with either a Max subscription or Amazon Prime Video subscription.

And, if you did enjoy these characters in the first movie, critics’ first reactions seem to indicate you’ll be happy with the sequel. While we wait for its release date, be sure to check out Ben Affleck’s other upcoming projects.

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Summer 2016 saw a sleeper hit born out of director Gavin O’Connor and star Ben Affleck’s surprise smash hit The Accountant. It was a movie that felt ripe to be franchised, and not too long after the initial release, it looked like that wasn’t too far off from the truth. But then the project seemed to vanish into thin air, with little to no updates over the last five years. So the recent announcement that O’Connor and Affleck are in fact re-teaming for The Accountant 2, along with co-star Jon Bernthal, is something that feels absolutely random, but at the same time long overdue.

Joining CinemaBlend's ReelBlend podcast, Gavin O’Connor broke the news to our hosts, and in a rather interesting way. While The Accountant 2 was confirmed in the works, it was at the cost of dismissing a sequel to The Way Back. Still, reading O’Connor’s affirmation that the long-awaited return of Ben Affleck’s Christian Wolff, who's part vigilante and part forensic accountant, is too sweet not to share:

That’s not all of the good news that Gavin O’Connor had to share with the ReelBlend boys. After confirming that The Accountant 2 is officially on the table, the director of The Way Back dished a couple of details about what the sequel’s story will be doing. But the real gem is the fact that there’s two big reasons The Accountant 2 is being made.

The first is so that Jon Bernthal, whose character Braxton was revealed to be Christian’s long lost brother in the third act, can play a bigger role. Which leads to the second huge factor: The Accountant 2 has to happen so that The Accountant 3 can also be brought to life. Here’s how Gavin O’Connor laid out both of these ambitious sequels:

The prospects for The Accountant 2 have been a bit of a rollercoaster over the past couple of years. As recently as 2019, Ben Affleck still spoke positively about the film’s chances, and noted that ideas were being kicked around. One such prospect was to turn the sequel into a potential TV series, which, judging by what Gavin O’Connor has to say about two presumably theatrical sequels, would have made sense. Though as early as last spring, it sounded like major hopes for The Accountant 2 were pretty much dashed.

During our interview with the director for The Way Back, we asked if The Accountant 2 was still a priority. And at the time, Gavin O’Connor seemed to be somewhat uncertain about the prospect, in a way that almost made another adventure with the Wolff brothers rather unlikely. His official response, as of early 2020, was as follows:

Of course, the ensuing events of the COVID-19 pandemic bringing the industry to a standstill may have played a part in changing Gavin O’Connor’s mind on The Accountant 2. Perhaps some tinkering with the ideas that he, Ben Affleck and writer Bill Dubuque had initially waded through yielded an idea too good to pass up. Whatever led all parties to supposedly jump back in and close the deal, it did the trick. And we now have renewed hopes for not one, but two Accountant follow ups in the years to come.

Unfortunately, there’s no further information as to when we can expect those films. At the moment, 2021’s release schedule still has plenty of films to account for in the coming months. Though Ben Affleck fans won’t have to wait too long to see him again, as he’ll be seen in Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel in October. And you can next catch Jon Bernthal in The Many Saints of Newark, which hits theaters and HBO Max on October 1. Should you want to see Tony Soprano's origin story in the comfort of your own home, check out the latest subscription offer that'll welcome you into the family of HBO Max.

It’s easy for some audience members to think of co-writer/director Gavin O’Connor’s new film The Way Back could be simply summed up as a sports movie. With his resume boasting similarly uplifting tales of athletic prowess, such as Disney’s Miracle and the MMA family drama Warrior, the marketing centered around Ben Affleck’s recovering alcoholic-turned-basketball coach seems to fit into that nice and easy couplet of words. If you were to ask O’Connor himself about that label though, he’d tell you that it couldn’t be further from the truth.

I was given the opportunity to speak to Gavin O’Connor during a recent press junket promoting The Way Back, and I used that impressive history of sports movies as a way to ask what it is about the genre that keeps the director coming back. O’Connor’s answer started with some background on how after Warrior, he had intended to never make another sports movie.

Though, he kind of gave himself an out when it came to his decision to make The Way Back, as he described the film in this particular framework:

Looking back at the film, as well as the promotional materials that are currently circulating to promote its theatrical release, Gavin O’Connor’s sentiment expressed above does feel more like a character study than a purebred sports film.

Were this a film more in line with the sorts of projects that genre label invokes, the primary focus would have been the story involving Ben Affleck’s Jack Cunningham and his efforts to shape the basketball team under his wing. The Way Back uses a very similar story within its finished product, but that’s merely a vehicle for something much deeper.

Take a look at Gavin O’Connor talking this point out, in the video from our interview, provided below:

The true purpose of The Way Back is to tell the story of Jack and his emotional story of redemption and recovery, after a personal tragedy has pushed him into a position of needing help. Opening on Ben Affleck’s protagonist on a construction job, which is quickly followed by him pouring a beer into a fast food drink container for the road, the stakes set aren’t those that can be won or lost on the basketball court.

Rather, we’re given an early window into Jack’s addictive routine, which sees him in a steady and repetitive cycle of drinking beers, replenishing his supply and starting over. All throughout, we see him talking with friends, visiting family and even frequenting his local bar in a vicious cycle of well-worn self-abuse.

Admittedly, it takes a little bit of time to get to the opportunity that sees Ben Affleck being drafted to coach his old high school basketball team during its own time of need. But even when Jack starts to mold the team into the force to be reckoned with we see from the second act on, we see the characters of these young players tweaked as much as we do their basketball skills.

Compare that sort of focus to the example of a movie like Disney’s Miracle, and you can see the differences between that sort of film and The Way Back in Gavin O’Connor’s own body of work. While there’s a colorful team of characters that we can get behind, and an inspirational coach in Kurt Russell’s Herb Brooks, the front and center focus is how the US Olympic Hockey team beat the USSR.

While still operating at a level of powerful storytelling that’s similar to The Way Back, the focus of Miracle is in a different context. It works under the usual model of the characters in a typical sports movie serving as the vehicle to tell the story of how such a monumental achievement could ever be won.

But with The Way Back, that formula is pretty much inverted, as instead of being a sports movie carried on the backs of intriguing characters, the film is a character study that just happens to use sporting camaraderie as the way to give our main character a sense of purpose again.

One very important common thread between both examples though is through The Way Back’s script, written by both Gavin O’Connor and Brad Ingelsby. It balances its dramatic weight between Jack’s shifting lifestyle and the high school basketball team’s transformation into a well-oiled machine. No matter which direction this sort of project ultimately tips its hand towards, there’s still the necessity to keep people drawn by one side or the other invested in the entire story.

It’s because of the stellar efforts of all involved with The Way Back that those two halves come together, and do so in a way that makes this film stand out from the sports movies it will inevitably be compared to. While the main task at hand is to watch Jack Cunningham’s struggle with addiction change parallel to his skills as a coach and a motivator, there’s still a strong framework of knowledge that makes the basketball component more than just decorative.

Technically, Gavin O’Connor stayed true to his promise mentioned earlier, as he didn’t make The Way Back as a simple sports movie. It just happens to be a movie that contains sports, but centers its gravity around a man trying to better himself, and the events that happen along the way. No matter how you interpret the film for yourself, it’s undeniably a film that only O’Connor and his talented cast and crew could have made, and we’re all the better for it.

You’ll get your shot to see the film critics are already talking about when The Way Back hits theaters on March 6. In the meantime, stay tuned to CinemaBlend throughout the rest of the week for further coverage of Gavin O’Connor’s powerful film, as well as all the other entertainment news you care about.

Ben Affleck has almost attained “Patron Saint” status on the ReelBlend podcast. Between our adoration of his portrayal of Batman to Kevin’s repeated praise of Affleck’s work in the Kevin Smith comedies (and if you haven’t heard how Kevin got Ben to be in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, then you are missing out on one HELL of a story), our love for Affleck has been no secret.

With the actor returning to the big screen for The Way Back, we doubled down on all things Affleck. For starters, we have an exclusive interview with Gavin O’Conner, the director of The Way Back. And we play #BenAffleckBlend, where Jake, Sean and Kevin give their picks for their favorite Ben movies. Their answers bring out personal reasons, which always makes for a solid Blend game.

In addition to the staples of the weekly ReelBlend show, the guys start to discuss the impact that the Coronavirus is having on the film industry at large. And in a weird twist of fate, one of the things that they predict on the show comes true right after we record. The next James Bond film, No Time to Die, pushed back from April to November. Which titles could be next?

Finally, in a touching segment, the ReelBlend boys pay tribute to the late James Lipton, the host of Inside the Actors Studio. Lipton ended up being a huge influence on the careers and interview styles of all three ReelBlend hosts, and they share stories about some of his best interviews.

6:03 - Weekly Poll: Which March release are you most excited for?

11:51 - Gavin O'Connor Interview

47:09 - Remembering James Lipton

1:03:30 - COVID-19 and the Film Industry

1:16:12 - This Week In Movies

1:25:26 - #BenAffleckBlend

Firmly established subgenres like stories of personal redemption and underdog sporting victories are hard to freshen up. They’ve already been done to the point where trying to put a new spin on either of those story elements is now as hard as trying to combine the two together.

It’s not uncharted territory for director Gavin O’Connor, as movies such as Miracle and Warrior have given him the opportunity to cross these kinds of stories into a cohesive whole in the past. But with The Way Back, the results are all the more exciting to behold, as O’Connor reteams with his The Accountant collaborator Ben Affleck to tell a story that hits close to home, allowing the actor to mine his personal history for a truly effective performance.

Jack Cunningham (Ben Affleck) works in construction by day, and is a hardcore drinker by night. Estranged from his ex-wife (Javina Gavankar) and still getting along with his family, Jack’s scraping by with a firm habit and no way out in sight.

By surprise, Jack is offered the last opportunity he’d ever think of entertaining: the coaching position on his Catholic school alma mater’s basketball team. With a young team of players that need some discipline, and his own problems ever present in his mind, this unexpected change of pace is thought to be the thing that Jack needs to get himself back on track.

The Way Back is a rousing sports story with heart.

If The Way Back were a Disney movie, it would have pulled way more punches than Gavin O’Connor’s film does. Co-writing the script with writer Brad Inglesby, O’Connor and his collaborator take the best of both worlds, and make not only an intriguing character study focused on addiction and recovery, but also a sports story for the ages.

The fact that this is an R-rated version of a movie we’d normally see play out in a PG-rated property is a huge part of what makes The Way Back as unique of a film as it is. We still get montages of a sweeping change in Jack and his team’s abilities on the court, and the movie is very much a feel good affirmation of how people can change. But there’s a little extra that pushes this film beyond the status quo you’d expect from this sort of project.

Seeing Ben Affleck’s Jack in the actual throes of his addiction help anchor the reality of The Way Back rather well. Also, the fact that the young players and their coach are allowed to talk like real people, obscenities and all, breaks some new ground by bringing some authenticity to a genre that usually plays a little too safe with its characters.

Gavin O'Connor continues to prove that he's a sports movie master.

Gavin O’Connor’s experience on both sides of the Disney movie divide (having made Miracle for the studio) definitely polishes The Way Back into a success that still hits you in the heart. With more of a realistic approach to the high school sports story aspects, the co-writer/director is able to meld that story together with that of Jack’s battle with alcoholism in a truly believable way.

The Way Back tells a story of teamwork and the inspirational power of sports, but it does so with a very human heart. All the while, Gavin O’Connor knows how best to balance the story of Jack’s struggles as well as that of his team, while robbing neither half of its importance. There are even some well-placed turns the The Way Back takes with its characters that only hammer home the importance of a very real story. Some of the tropes you’d expect to see play out in either a story of personal redemption or sporting triumph are missing, and in their place are well earned events that better serve a more dramatically rich and believable version of what seems like a familiar narrative.

Ben Affleck gives a beautifully cathartic performance.

As someone who’s struggled with alcoholism himself, Ben Affleck is the perfect choice to bring Jack Cunningham to life, flaws and all, in The Way Back. With the leeway to be a more imperfect but kind-hearted version of a coach who wants to lead his kids to glory, Affleck’s performance on and off the film’s court is an absolutely beautiful exercise in catharsis.

His own personal history lends an extra angle of verisimilitude when it comes to watching Jack’s progress and setbacks that come with his crippling addiction. It’s also because of his own experiences that we see Ben Affleck working through his own painful past through his work, which only enriches The Way Back’s entire central conceit.

Rooting for both Jack Cunningham and the team he’s coaching is easier than ever thanks to the troubles he faces in The Way Back carrying the dramatic weight that they do. Seeing him morph into a take charge coach that helps a team of teenagers turn their fates around brings out all the best in Affleck, and when he cranks things into full coaching mode, you can’t help but feel inspired yourself.

An emotional tale of redemption and recovery, The Way Back takes a time tested story, and infuses it with realism and humanity. It’s a familiar sort of movie, painted with some extra dimensions not normally included that turn it into a fine example of both sports cinema and character work. A honest, feel good triumph of team spirit and personal growth awaits those who see it.

Ben Affleck has been open about his struggles with alcoholism throughout his career. The Way Back is, in many ways, a deeply personal film for the actor, who plays a high school basketball coach struggling with sobriety and attempting to piece his life back together. And, according to the director, one moment was so personal for Ben Affleck that he had a breakdown while filming it -- and they could not include the full scene in the movie.

According to director Gavin O’Connor, Ben Affleck filmed The Way Back while he was in the early stages of his own recovery. The director said the actor went to rehab while he was preparing for The Way Back. And while he was initially concerned that they would not be able to complete the film, his vulnerability in those early days ended up informing much of his performance.

In an interview with the Associated Press, the director revealed that filming one key moment, in which Ben Affleck’s character Jack Cunningham makes amends with his wife, caused the actor to break down:

While the scene remains in The Way Back, director Gavin O'Connor told the AP he made the decision to cut some moments out for the theatrical release:

Though no one can know for sure what exactly Ben Affleck was feeling at that moment, Gavin O'Connor believes that he probably felt some parallels with his own life -- particularly where his divorce from Jennifer Garner is concerned. And in his own conversation with the AP, Ben Affleck acknowledged that he brought a lot of his own history to his performance as Jack Cunningham:

Ben Affleck also made it clear that his experience with sobriety has taught him a lot about how to survive the ups and downs of addiction:

It definitely takes courage to work through these kinds of personal struggles in the public eye. And even more so to try to transform your own setbacks into something that can help others through their struggles, too. You can see Ben Affleck in The Way Back in theaters on March 6, 2020.

Ever since 2016’s The Accountant, people have been waiting for director Gavin O’Connor and actor Ben Affleck to re-team for another run at the big screen. While The Way Back isn’t exactly the sequel that people were expecting to that previous film, it’s something that’s heavier in reality, as Affleck’s new protagonist wrestles with alcohol problems as he tries to reconnect with the sport that he loves: basketball.

We now have our first trailer for The Way Back, and you can watch it below:

The Way Back almost looks like it’s a sort of Disney sports drama, from the other side of the equation. Instead of focusing on the troubled kids that Affleck’s Jack Cunningham finds himself recruited to coach into better shape, the movie is squarely looking at Jack’s fall from grace and his road back to being a well-adjusted person.

The film also looks like a heavier drama than most other sports movies, as the glimpses we get into the troubled life of Ben Affleck’s character in The Way Back’s theatrical trailer are quite troubling. His alcoholism cost him his family, and has put him into more than a couple harrowing situations, just in this short look alone. If anything, the whole movie looks like it’ll be something that reaches deep into the heart of Affleck’s problems on screen, which in their own way reflect the personal struggles that the actor has openly discussed in his off screen life.

Originally meant to be released this past October, The Way Back was moved to next year, and that choice looks to be a solid one for this film’s box office prospects. With most of the competition on that date looking to be family fare, with Pixar’s Onward being the big fish to swim against.

However, Warner Bros may have landed themselves a clear counter-programming win, as audience members who may not be all in on animation, or may be big fans of basketball and stories of redemption, will have something to go see when the time comes. Either way you look at it, The Way Back has a better chance of being seen against next year’s competition than it did against the likes of Joker and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.

With its story of getting back to who you were through the love of a game, The Way Back looks just like one of those inspirational sports stories you’d expect from a Disney sports drama. The big difference is, this film looks like it has a deeper pit for our hero to climb out of, but also a bigger, more complex heart to get him through that journey.

The Way Back heads to theaters on March 6, 2020; and if you’re looking for a clearer picture of what’s headed our way in the next year, head over to our 2020 release schedule to see what’s coming to a theater near you.

Ben Affleck has ridden some rocky blockbuster waves in recent years, but one film that was really an undeniable success arrived in the fall of 2016. Gavin O'Connor's The Accountant is one of the rare recent original action titles to actually perform really well at the box office, making $155.1 million globally on a $44 million budget. The performance was significant enough to immediately start some sequel chatter, and while we haven't heard much about the project in a minute, it's apparently a project that Affleck is still interested in pursuing.

It was last reported that The Accountant 2 was in the works with Gavin O'Connor returning to direct and Bill Dubuque (the original's screenwriter) taking care of the script, but that was in the summer of 2017. Nearly two year's worth of silence is quite a lot, but thankfully Ben Affleck has now provided us an update, via Collider - explaining that the film is definitely one that he wants to pursue:

The project that Ben Affleck is referring to is the film Torrance, which completed filming last year. A completely different kind of story and genre than The Accountant, the movie is a sports drama that follows a former star basketball player who tries to get his life back together by becoming the coach of the team at his old high school. The film is produced by Warner Bros. - the same studio behind Affleck and O'Connor's previous collaboration - and while a release date has not yet been announced, one can probably predict that we'll be seeing it come out some time in the fall.

As for The Accountant 2, it's actually a pretty exciting prospect, and right now could be a perfect project for Ben Affleck. Christian Wolff is a legitimately fascinating character - a public accountant with high-functioning autism who moonlights as an assassin - and the first movie really makes for a cool origin story. There are hundreds of stories that could be told with him going forward, and it could become a fun franchise role for the star.

For what it's worth, we might already have an inkling of a plot for the proposed sequel, as Gavin O'Connor talked out some ideas with me when I interviewed him about The Accountant back in 2016. Discussing potential story ideas, he put forward a really dark direction for the world in which Christian Wolff lives, saying,

For now, though, The Accountant 2 merely exists in theory. Of course, if we get any more details about it you'll be sure to find them here on CinemaBlend.

Months after he was fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, it was announced yesterday that James Gunn has leaped over to Marvel's Distinguished Competition, a.k.a. DC, to write Suicide Squad 2, which he might also direct. The Accountant's Gavin O'Connor was previously writing and directing Suicide Squad 2, and as for why Gunn is now filling his position, supposedly it had to do with O'Connor's story for the sequel too closely resembling what's in store for Birds of Prey. According to Variety reporter Justin Kroll:

Gavin O'Connor was hired to write and direct Suicide Squad 2 in September of last year, taking over the scripting duties that The Legend of Tarzan's Adam Cozad previously handled. This past June, Todd Stashwick was brought on board to co-write Suicide Squad 2 with O'Connor, making it seem like these men would definitely be the ones picking up where David Ayer left off. But a lot can change within a few months, like Birds of Prey being prioritized. Throw in both stories being too similar, and as Justin Kroll passed along on Twitter, O'Connor departed the project and shifted focus to Has Been.

From what little we know about Birds of Prey, the story centers on Black Canary, Huntress, Harley Quinn and Renee Montoya crossing paths and clashing with Gotham City crime boss Roman Sionis, a.k.a. Black Mask. I'm guessing that Gavin O'Connor's version of Suicide Squad 2 would have seen its main characters also fighting an organized crime figure, providing a much more grounded threat for Task Force X to deal with compared to the mystical Enchantress and Incubus in the first Suicide Squad movie. In any case, that story has been scrapped, leaving James Gunn free to embark on a new creative path.

Rather being being a direct follow-up to Suicide Squad, James Gunn's Suicide Squad 2 will feature a brand-new take on the team, though it's unclear if this means it will be a full-on reboot or if it will still be set in the DC Extended Universe, but just feature a new lineup of players. Either way, we can expect to once again see super villains who have been incarcerated by the U.S. government being recruited to go on dangerous black-ops missions in exchange for reduced prison sentences and other forms of leniency.

As for Birds of Prey, it will be released on February 7, 2020, three months after Wonder Woman 1984. So far the cast consists of Margot Robbie reprising Harley Quinn, Jurnee Smollett-Bell as Black Canary, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Huntress and Rosie Perez as Detective Renee Montoya. Cathy Yan is directing and Christina Hodson (who's also writing the Batgirl movie) penned the screenplay.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates about Suicide Squad 2, but in the meantime, you can look through our DC movies guide to learn what else the DCEU has in development.

Gavin O'Connor's 2016 film The Accountant was successful enough at the box office and on home video that now a sequel is in the works. Ben Affleck is set to return as the autistic, military-trained accountant for the sequel. While we wait to see if director Gavin O'Connor will also return for The Accountant 2, he may be re-teaming up with Ben Affleck for another new movie. The director and star duo are circling the drama film The Has-Been based on a script from Run All Night and Out of the Furnace writer Brad Ingelsby.

The Has-Been is about a former basketball all-star who lost his wife and family foundation due to his struggle with addiction. In order to try and save himself, he returns to his high school to become the coach of the ethnically-mixed basketball team. Gavin O'Connor would direct Ben Affleck, who wants to play the former all-star turned coach in the film. According to Deadline, while no deals have yet been made, the script has drawn a lot of interest and Warner Bros. is trying to make a deal that would put The Has-Been on the fast track with the director and actor duo.

Given the excitement around Brad Ingelsby's script and the success of Ben Affleck and Gavin O'Connor's previous pairing, there's a lot be hopeful for about The Has-Been. The subject matter sounds like it makes for the kind of uplifting sports movie that most people love, and Gavin O'Connor has experience tackling a sports film in Warrior. This also sounds like the kind of role that is different from what we usually see Ben Affleck in, and could be the kind of thing that he can really sink his teeth into and show what he's capable of.

The fact that the former all-star in the story lost everything because of his addiction is also interesting and quite relevant in current times. This aspect of the story will hopefully provide some depth to help elevate and differentiate The Has-Been from every other movie about an underdog team coming together. You may also notice that this setup isn't entirely dissimilar from the plot of The Mighty Ducks, where Gordon Bombay fell on hard times and found himself by helping a kids hockey team. While I don't expect this film to take the humorous route that beloved film did, and there are obviously plenty of differences, the basic premise has certainly proven itself before.

Ben Affleck and Gavin O'Connor both have plenty on their plates in addition to the possibility of taking on The Has-Been. Ben Affleck is currently filming the long-in-development drug thriller Triple Frontier for Netflix. Affleck's next directorial effort looks to be the adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel Witness for the Prosecution. Gavin O'Connor is attached to another remake of The Green Hornet and he is developing to direct Suicide Squad 2, which has been rumored to be Ben Affleck's last appearance as Batman.

We'll keep you updated as The Has-Been moves forward. For all the latest in movie news, stay tuned to CinemaBlend.

The DC Extended Universe has had some serious ebbs and flows in its short life. Rather than systematically introducing new characters and settings like the MCU, DC attempted to play catch up with ensemble films like Justice League and Suicide Squad. The latter had a ton of hype around it due to a fantastic first trailer, but the finished product was an uneven mess that had only brief moments of magic. An upcoming sequel is one of the many movies DC has recently announced, with director Gavin O'Connor attached to direct. Now Suicide Squad has taken another step forward, as two writers have signed on to the project.

DC's upcoming Suicide Squad movie had landed David Bar Katz and Todd Stashwick as co-writers of the film. This is exciting news for everyone hoping to see the likes of Harley Quinn and Deadshot on the silver screen sooner rather than later. It will be the first time the duo is collaborating on a project, after having separate careers in film and TV.

News of David Bar Katz and Todd Tashwick's involvement in Suicide Squad 2, which comes to us from THR, is sure to be exciting for the DC fans out there. Part of what makes the DCEU so exciting how new it is, and therefore full of possibilities. The MCU hasn't built a film around a villain until Infinity War, so Suicide Squad's villain-centric story is something unique. While David Ayer's execution of the first film left much to be desired, the blockbuster made enough money that a sequel is still happening.

It should be interesting to see what direction Suicide Squad's sequel ultimately takes. The first film's problem was that it was a bit disjointed; there were a ton of characters to introduce, and 3 different villains if you include Viola Davis' Amanda Waller. But Waller, Harley Quinn, and Deadshot all proved to be fascinating characters, despite being dragged down by dead weight like Katana and Captain Boomerang.

Suicide Squad's sequel is one of many movies that is set to star Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn. After stealing the show in her debut film, DC has announced a ton of potential projects that might include the villain. This includes a solo movie, a movie with Joker, Gotham City Sirens, or even Birds of Prey. That's enough to get even the normally crazed Quinn confused, and it's unclear if/when DC will ever reveal a concrete release schedule to the public a la Marvel's phases of films.

Alas, we'll have to wait until DC eventually make its plans clear. In the meantime, we have a few movies to look forward to. Aquaman will arrive on December 21, 2018, while Shazam! hits theaters April 5th, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

With Justice League just over the horizon, it seems like the DCEU is finally coming together. The cinematic universe of DC characters has a number of announced films in the works, one of which is a sequel to the critically panned but still successful Suicide Squad. Gavin O'Connor is taking over directing duties, but we don't know very much else about the project. One of the biggest question marks is whether or not Jared Leto's Joker will be included in the sequel. While there are a few different Joker projects, Jared Leto admits that he doesn't really know if he's in Suicide Squad 2 or not.

Jared Leto, who recently appeared in Blade Runner 2049, chatted with Collider about his role in the movie when the subject of the Joker inevitably came up. When asked about whether or not he knew if he was appearing in Suicide Squad 2, Leto essentially said that there's a lot going on right now, and he isn't entirely sure. He does, however, think that Gavin O'Connor is a good director and a perfect choice for the supervillain sequel.

So, no confirmation on Joker for the sequel, but it's also unclear exactly who is coming back for Suicide Squad 2. The only three characters who seem like a sure thing are Will Smith's Deadshot, Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller; everyone else is kind of free game. As for the Joker's chances, they seem decent. He was previously rumored to be in the sequel, and the marketing for the original film put such a heavy emphasis on him (even though the actual left much of it on the cutting room floor). On the other hand, Leto's Joker was controversial among viewers, with unique mannerisms and a bevy of tattoos. Plus, Leto was rumored to have been mad about the news that other people will be playing the Joker, so maybe he isn't thrilled to come back.

While Suicide Squad 2 is up in the air, Warner Bros. does have a few other Joker projects in the works. A Joker-Harley romance movie is in development with the directors of Crazy, Stupid, Love set to helm. There's also the outside-of-the-box Joker film that is expected to stand outside of DCEU continuity. This film will be a Joker origin story developed by Martin Scorsese with Leonardo Di Caprio being pursued to star. You're not exactly going to be Joker-starved over the next few years.

Suicide Squad 2 is currently scheduled to premiere some time in 2019. To learn everything you can about the sequel, here's what we know so far.

As the third entry of the DC Extended Universe, Suicide Squad was one of the biggest commercial hits of 2016, making over $745 million worldwide. With money like that, it's no surprise that DC and Warner Bros have been working to get the sequel off the ground. For months there have been numerous contenders mentioned to replace David Ayer as director, but today that search comes to a close, as The Accountant's Gavin O'Connor has been selected to helm Suicide Squad 2.

According to THR, Gavin O'Connor has come aboard to both write and direct Suicide Squad 2. O'Connor's name emerges after other directors like Mel Gibson, Jaume Collet-Serra and Daniel Espinosa were reported to be in the running to take on Suicide Squad 2. At one point Collet-Serra was reportedly the frontrunner for the gig, but he ended up taking Jungle Cruise over at Disney, and now O'Connor has stepped in to oversee the DC project. As for David Ayer, he's still working in the DCEU, but he's shifted his attention to Gotham City Sirens.

Gavin O'Connor's directing credits include Miracle, Warrior, Jane Got a Gun and The Accountant, with the latter movie proving to be a quiet hit for Warner Bros last year. No doubt that played a role in the studio deciding that O'Connor was the right person to direct Suicide Squad 2. The Accountant 2 is in development, and even with this Suicide Squad 2 news, O'Connor is still expected to helm the sequel to the Ben Affleck action movie, though it's possible it may now be delayed to O'Connor can dedicate his focus to the team of DC criminals.

Right now, it looks like Suicide Squad 2 will be the next DCEU movie to film after Shazam, which is reportedly rolling cameras early next year. However, exactly when Suicide Squad 2 will begin filming is unclear, as some of the actors have packed schedules for the foreseeable future, like Will Smith working the live action Aladdin movie and Margot Robbie working on Mary Queen of Scots. Because of these timing conflicts, it may not be until the latter half of 2018 before the Squad reassembles.

No official Suicide Squad 2 plot details have been revealed yet, but like its predecessor and the comic book source material, it will revolve around a team of incarcerated super villains forced to go on dangerous missions for the U.S. government. Most, if not all, of the surviving members of the team from the first movie are expected to return for Suicide Squad 2, but you can be sure that a couple of new faces will be brought in to fill the positions left by the late Slipknot and Diablo. The Legend of Tarzan's Adam Cozad is penning the sequel's script.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates regarding Suicide Squad 2 as they come in.

Paramount Pictures picked up the rights and are working on rebooting The Green Hornet, which has been a pop culture mainstay since the character debuted on the radio back in the 1930s. Since then he's appeared in a myriad of comics, his very own television series, and most recently came to the big screen in the Seth Rogen-led 2011 origin story, which despite being enjoyable failed to find a large enough audience to warrant a sequel. Paramount are confident that won't be the case this time around, and they've brought Gavin O'Connor on board to direct. Together they're planning on reimagining the character of Britt Reid, and they're hoping that the impending reboot will launch its own franchise.

Deadline was the first to reveal that Paramount Pictures and Chernin Entertainment have purchased the rights to Green Hornet after Sony Pictures allowed them to expire. They also revealed that at the behest of Gavin O'Connor, Britt Reid is going to get a brand new image that's described as "edgy." In fact, O'Connor described his incarnation of The Green Hornet as "Batman upside down meets Bourne inside out by the way of Chris Kyle [American Sniper]." I'm not really sure what that means but I'm definitely intrigued.

As well as directing, Gavin O'Conner will produce the film, and he's going to be working in very close cahoots with screenwriter Sean O'Keefe. O'Connor most recently found success with the Ben Affleck led The Accountant, while he previously oversaw Jane Got A Gun and Warrior, too.

Gavin O'Connor has been relentless in his pursuit of making a new Green Hornet film. He admitted to Deadline that after he realized the rights were available he tracked them down with producer Peter Chernin and set up the film with Paramount. O'Connor has explained that they plan on "modernizing" The Green Hornet for an entire new generation, and this will include wiping "away the camp and kitsch of the previous iteration."

It also sounds as though The Green Hornet will be partly inspired by the characters in the Marvel and DC Comics universes, as Gavin O'Connor explained that his version of Britt Reid is undergoing a crisis of identity and is "at war with himself". After describing The Green Hornet as a "film about self-discovery," O'Connor added that his Britt Reid has lost his faith in service, institutions, and the system.

By the sound of things we can expect to see Britt Reid struggling to come to terms with the death of his father, while Gavin O'Connor also suggested that his time at war in the military, where he was "cross-trained in intelligence work and kinetic operations" will be prominent, too.

It's interesting just how little mention Gavin O'Connor made of Kato in his opening spiel to announce himself as the new man behind The Green Hornet. I've always seen The Green Hornet as very much a dual-partnership between Britt Reid, a wealthy young publisher who dons the mask to become the vigilante after the death of his father, and his loyal driver and bodyguard Kato, a martial arts expert who is also masked and drives their technologically advanced car Black Beauty.

Maybe Gavin O'Connor's origin story will just revolve around Britt Reid this time around with Kato becoming more involved later in the film or even in a sequel. Of course it's still way too early to speculate. But Gavin O'Connor's passion and desire to do justice to the character is palpable, and he sounds like the perfect director to bring The Green Hornet into the future.

The Accountant is off to a fantastic start at the box office. The movie not only opened at number one this weekend, pulling in nearly $25 million, but it's even already looking like one of Ben Affleck's most successful movies. It's this kind of win that usually gets Hollywood buzzing about sequel potential -- and director Gavin O'Connor is totally on-board with that idea.

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Gavin O'Connor for a one-on-one interview during a Los Angeles press event for The Accountant, and it was at the very end of the conversation that I asked him about the potential future for Ben Affleck's autistic hero, Christian Wolff. As it was more than a week before the movie's opening at the time, I set up a hypothetical for the filmmaker, asking if he could see himself working on a The Accountant 2 if the first one made enough money to warrant it. Without hesitation, he explained exactly why he would love the chance to make a sequel:

This is a storytelling trick that a lot of filmmakers and audiences are learning nowadays, particularly thanks to the dominance of the superhero genre. While the first movie in a potential franchise typically has to be used to set up a backstory and explain who the hero is, once all that is out of the way you can use the sequel to basically tell any story you want. It's because of this kind of thinking that sequels have started to vastly improve in the modern blockbuster era, and The Accountant is a perfect candidate for the treatment given the strength of Ben Affleck's lead character.

What it may also interest you to know is that Gavin O'Connor's thinking about a possible The Accountant 2 hasn't merely been limited to the question of whether or not he would want to make it. Rather, the director told me that he already has a very clear idea of the subject matter he wants to deal with in the follow-up -- and it's pretty damn dark. Said the director,

When you take into consideration Christian Wolff's autism, pairing him with children for a potential The Accountant 2 is definitely an interesting idea. After all, kids can be chaotic, impatient noise machines, and while Christian will certainly want to help them because of his strong ethics, they should also really push his sensitivities to a limit. Trying to save them could be as much of a test for him as a hero as any paces that the villain orchestrating the child slavery ring puts him through.

For now, the idea of a The Accountant 2 is merely hypothetical, but it certainly has the potential to become a possibility. Stay tuned for updates!

Ben Affleck is having a year of ups and downs so far. On the one hand, he got to live out a dream by becoming one of the very few actors to play Batman on the big screen -- but on the other, the two movies in which he did so didn't exactly turn out so great. Now the actor's third film of 2016 is about to arrive in the form of Gavin O'Connor's The Accountant, and it mostly just continues the up and down trend, as it doesn't fully come together as a great film, but it most definitely is an excellent vehicle for the star.

Based on an original screenplay by Bill Dubuque, The Accountant centers on Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck), an oddball guy on the outside who is hiding some tremendous secrets. Diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum when he was a child, Christian is a math savant with incredible focus and intelligence - but rather than going the Rain Man route and heading to Vegas with these gifts, he instead uses them -- as well as training from his Army father -- to become a criminal bookkeeper who travels the world helping notorious felons uncover any issues or irregularities in their records.

Working out of his front ZZZ Accounting, the stoic-but-deadly Christian gets what seems like an ordinary call from a technology company called Living Robotics, which is about to go public but has discovered some issues in their accounts. Forced to work alongside a peppy company employee named Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick), Christian is shockingly able to mow through years of files and data in a matter of hours to discover what's wrong with the numbers... but that's when things start going extremely wrong. People associated with the company and the investigation begin turning up dead thanks to the work of a mysterious hired killer named Braxton (Jon Bernthal), leading Christian and Dana to not only go on the run together, but also to figure out exactly what's happening and who is responsible.

The script for The Accountant ultimately boils down to a mix of some smart, interesting choices and dumb, confusing ones -- but it manages to strike a reasonable balance overall that lets the movie keep afloat as a fun and compelling adventure. As far as the less desirable choices go, the plot never really raises above "simple," and at times, the movie resembles Swiss cheese; there are "twists" that can be figured out an hour before they are revealed; and it carries a subplot involving two Treasury Department agents (J.K. Simmons, Cynthia Addai-Robinson) who are hunting Christian that is so awkwardly fit into the structure that you occasionally forget that it's part of the movie. These are all obviously significant elements, and collectively they would be enough to sink most films -- but it honestly helps to think of The Accountant more as a hero origin story, as it's the fascinating protagonist and Ben Affleck's performance that make it all worth the ticket price.

In case you hadn't noticed, movies about action heroes on the autism spectrum aren't exactly crazy common, but the combined forces of Ben Affleck, Gavin O'Connor and Bill Dubuque have come together to create a lead in Christian Wolff who is very far from charismatic, but is fascinating, cool, and feels weirdly authentic. The movie not only gives its protagonist a great backstory -- filled in with flashbacks featuring his father (Robert C. Treveiler) instilling him with discipline and strength to overcome his neurological challenges -- but it also wonderfully peppers in unique moments that can come about because of the originality in the character. This includes regularly scheduled sensory overload sessions that help him strengthen his weaknesses; montages of number crunching that would potentially be crazy boring without such an interesting mind at the center of it; and sequences within Christian's storage locker-parked trailer, which is filled wall-to-wall with amazing riches afforded from his work (including Luke Skywalker's lightsaber, a copy of Action Comics #1, and a few priceless pieces of art).

Given tremendous character material, Ben Affleck carries The Accountant, but he partially does so because he manages to not only perfectly pull off the badass action, but also bring a surprising amount of humor to the role. It's a tightrope walk for the movie tonally, with it being very sensitive to those in the autism community, but Christian's bluntness in conversation and action often lead to some legitimately funny moments -- particularly when he's with the emotionally-opposite Dana or effortlessly and casually taking out bad guys while by-standers gawp at him. It winds up being the key final piece in the puzzle that lets the film click as a legitimate bit of entertainment.

When you take Ben Affleck's Christian Wolff out of the equation, The Accountant doesn't really amount to much, mostly sticking to boilerplate, standard action setups as some really great actors regularly pop up on the screen... but it does have something legitimately special in its hero. You do wish that the filmmakers worked to put him at the center of a better story, but that hope ultimately also extends to wanting to see that better story to be featured in a sequel.

On the set of a film, the director is king. He or she is the one who ultimately calls all the shots and makes all the decisions, and while different filmmakers allow different amounts of opinion on their sets, the final call in basically every situation is there. As such, you might see why a director might be nervous about casting an actor who is also a filmmaker -- fearing that they might try and be a bit too forceful with their thoughts. This was a concern very much at the forefront of Gavin O'Connor's mind when he was first starting to make The Accountant and was looking at Ben Affleck to star -- but it wound up being a situation that fully defused itself in the first phone call between the two men.

Gavin O'Connor shared this story with me late last week when I sat down to talk with him during the Los Angeles press day for The Accountant. Curious about his working relationship with Ben Affleck, I asked if he had to change his personal approach when working with an actor who is an acclaimed filmmaker in his own right -- and O'Connor explained that he didn't really have to thanks to a conversation he had with Affleck during pre-production. Said the director,

In fact, it seemed that Ben Affleck was actually more than happy to not be sitting in the director's chair for the making of The Accountant, as he even promised Gavin O'Connor that he would be happy to just leave set whenever stuff would start to fall apart:

It seems that this wound up being a smart start for the work between the two, as it immediately established the important hierarchy that would exist on set -- and apparently it led to the two men being happy working together. They say communication is the key to any relationship, and this is a prime example.

You'll be able to see the results of Gavin O'Connor and Ben Affleck's collaboration this weekend, as The Accountant arrives in theaters this Friday -- and be sure to stay tuned for more from my interview with the director!

World Cup Fever has hit America (or... most of America?) and in the past week soccer/football has firmly established itself as truly the biggest sport in the world. Now is the best time for Hollywood to catch on an obvious-as-hell trend, and they're doing it in a big way. Coming off Edge Of Tomorrow, Doug Liman is going to remake Victory.

The Hollywood Reporter claims that Gavin O'Connor is writing a redo of the classic soccer/football hit Victory for Doug Liman to direct. Set during World War II, the movie finds British and French P.O.W.'s competing against the German National Team in a soccer/football match while also plotting a daring escape. The original Victory, alternately called Escape To Victory, was released in 1981, and starred an eclectic cast including Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine and Pele. Yes, that Pele. The trailer is below. Yes, ladies, Michael Caine was once a real swingin' dude.

Soccer/football has had a rough time breaking out into mainstream movies, and usually it's used as the background for another issue. Many of the highest-grossing soccer/football movies are like Will Ferrell's Kicking And Screaming, which found the comedy star playing a soccer/football coach trying to find common ground with his ornery father (Robert Duvall). The highest-grossing soccer/football film that actually feels like it's about soccer/football is Bend It Like Beckham, which grossed $76 million at the global box office.

While there might be a question of profitability, Liman is riding high with a possible $400 million final tally for Edge Of Tomorrow. In addition to Victory, the director is also attached to the wonky-sounding space film Railman and might be a contender for the action thriller Narco Sub . Liman cut his teeth in the indie world with Swingers and Go, but he also played a huge part in creating the Bourne franchise. Unfortunately, he couldn't generate sequels or spinoffs for Mr. And Mrs. Smith or Jumper, even if the former was a hit. This being Hollywood, it's a surprise he isn't being sentenced to death for that crime.

Gavin O'Connor has done more directing as of late instead of writing. He's recently been behind the camera for the thriller Jane Got A Gun , and is always linked to some would-be blockbuster - recently becoming a candidate for the directing gig on Snow White And The Huntsman 2: But Also No Snow White And More Huntsman. If Liman somehow detaches himself from directing Victory, I could definitely see O'Connor stepping in.

Chris Hemsworth, you sexy beast you. With Chris Evans thinking retirement, Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner working in indies and Scarlett Johansson taking on several supporting roles, Hemsworth is the only Avenger actively trying to reach the level of Iron Man A-Lister Robert Downey Jr. The question is, are franchise commitments going to help or hurt Chris Hemsworth?

Deadline reports that Hemsworth is contractually obligated to return for Snow White And The Huntsman 2, and that they are exercising his option within the next couple of months upon the completion of Avengers: Age Of Ultron. That means that Hemsworth had to reject the chance to star in the sci-fi thriller Brilliance, which was originally going to feature Will Smith in the lead.

Also returning to Snow White And The Huntsman 2 is Kristen Stewart, making this an expensive reunion of sorts. The first film cost $170 million and only pulled in $155 million domestically. Global numbers saved the picture, as it closed with $396 million worldwide, but that's not a knockout number considering how expensive the film was. Nonetheless, despite the suggestion that the sequel could feature only Snow White, or only the Huntsman, both will be returning, a surprise considering all the drama behind the scenes of the first film: most people think of this movie as the one that broke up the hallowed Stewart-Robert Pattinson union, when she had an affair with director Rupert Sanders.

And who will steward this ship? Universal is courting a pretty impressive trio for the director's chair now that Sanders isn't returning (and because the movie has to heavily outgross the original to make this franchise worth it). The biggest name in the mix for the gig is Frank Darabont, recently of the AMC series The Walking Dead. The last movie Darabont directed was 2007's The Mist, a spooky chiller from Stephen King's house of horrors. That said, Darabont is probably best known for making The Shawshank Redemption, the only film that, at every single minute, is playing on some television station somewhere in the world.

Frequent short-list participant Gavin O'Connor is also a possibility for Snow White and the Huntsman 2. O'Conner has made a living out of being rumored for directing gigs, and he's currently putting the finishing touches on Jane Got A Gun, where he steadied a troubled project after Lynne Ramsey, the film's original director, bailed on the first day of production. O'Conner's credits include Warrior and Pride And Glory, and he'd bring a gritty edge to the film.

The third contender for the gig is the suddenly-available Andy Muschietti, who became a known name in Hollywood thanks to his directorial debut, Mama. It's interesting that Universal wants to be in business with him give that he recently vacated the director's chair for their reboot of The Mummy. He'd be the freshest and cheapest option for Snow White And The Huntsman 2, but we still don't know what Muschietti can do with a budget quite yet. According to Deadline's report, the intention is to have the movie ready to be released in 2016.

Once again, another former Ben Affleck project is going on to another director, with the current Batman unable to tell you exactly how he likes them apples. A couple of years ago, Affleck signed on to direct an essentially unneeded American remake of French actor/director‘s Guillaume Cannet’s 2006 thriller Tell No One, but the murderous torch has now been passed on to Warrior’s Gavin O’Connor, who is currently in negotiations with Universal and Warner Bros. to take the job.

Affeck’s return to superhero films has left a lot of cinema fans angry, as his directorial efforts, including last year’s Best Picture Argo, have been much stronger than films that he merely starred in. He almost certainly would have transitioned Tell No One’s French setting to a more American, urban aesthetic (the original novel by Harlan Coben is set in New York City), but there’s no certainty to what O’Connor will bring to this project.

Following 2008’s so-so crime thriller Pride and Glory and the aforementioned Warrior, O’Connor joined the constantly in flux western Jane Got a Gun, as well as the pilot episode of the hit FX series The Americans. Who knows if he has the talent to pull off a twisted thriller as well-done as this.

Here’s how Tell No One works. Based on Coben's best-selling novel, the film follows a doctor who goes out for a romantic swim with his wife when she is taken away by a band of kidnappers. Or so he thinks. The husband is suspected of her murder, and he again comes under suspicion when another body is found near the spot where his wife was originally found. Only, he gets an email one day with a picture of his wife current alive. So maybe she didn’t die? Or is it all in his head?

All the actors in the original film, from François Cluzetto to Marie-Josée Croze to Kristin Scott Thomas, were all so very good at keeping the mystery going. It’s always troublesome to picture more obvious American actors taking over for those who originated the roles. Maybe Thomas will come back.

Argo screenwriter Chris Terrio wrote the script, so there’s a really good chance this curving story will take the right kind of twists and turns. But it’s a co-production between two of the biggest movie studios on the planet, so the room for potential failure is vast. Check out the trailer for Canet’s winning film below.

If anyone is interested in Canet’s next film, it’s the Clive Owen and Marion Cotillard thriller Blood Ties; check out the trailer for that one below.

Monday was meant to be the start date for production on the already anticipated Western Jane Got a Gun. With a cast that boasts Natalie Portman, Joel Edgerton, and Jude Law, and an acclaimed director in Lynne Ramsay (We Need to Talk About Kevin), this indie effort seemed destined for major attention. Tuesday this proved true, but in a way no one hoped for or anticipated when Ramsay failed to report to the first day of shooting. She'd abruptly walked off the project, leaving a cast and crew of 150 in Sante Fe, New Mexico without a director.

Amid fuming and threatening legal recrimination, the film's producers, which include Scott Steindorff, Aleen Keshishian, and lead Natalie Portman, scrambled to find a replacement to prevent the independent effort from falling apart. Deadline reports they are closing a deal with their replacement/project savior, Gavin O'Connor, best known for writing and directing the 2011 MMA drama Warrior, which notably also starred Edgerton. Once O'Connor signs on officially, production is expected to pick up tomorrow.

This whole story is incredible. For one thing, it seems pretty unprofessional of Ramsay, after nine months of development on the film, to walk off on the project on such short notice and at such a critical time. It's a move that could have killed the movie's chances of being made. Industry press is struggling to think of a worst first day of production, comparing Ramsay's departure to jilting someone at the altar.

Making things even more bizarre, Ramsay has so far stayed silent about her reasons for abandoning Jane Got a Gun, though Steindorff was quick to release a statement decrying her actions. As an admirer of her work, I'm trying to stay open-minded about this event. But as a devoted movie lover, I'm mortified by Ramsay's seemingly reckless behavior following what is rumored to have been a contentious weekend between herself and the feature's producers.

When I got on the phone with Warrior director Gavin O'Connor a few weeks ago, I admitted that I wasn't exactly the typical audience for his movie-- I've never been able to bring myself to watch the mixed-martial arts fighting that makes up the story of Warrior, about two brothers who find themselves facing off in an MMA championship. As it turned out, O'Connor thinks I'm the target audience after all-- he told me that after the first test screenings of his emotional and even tearjerking new film, studio executives told him "You've made a chick flick."

Starring Joel Edgerton, Tom Hardy, and Nick Nolte in a role that was written for him, Warrior is really more of a family drama set amid the world of MMA-- O'Connor, who is full of good phrases about the movie he's spent years making, says he calls it "an intervention in a ring." I talked to O'Connor about the balance of emotion and action in the movie, how he managed a PG-13 rating even with such violent fights, and how he picked Hardy and Edgerton for the lead roles. I also started by asking him about his cameo in the movie as the hedge fund billionaire who funds the big MMA competition-- as it turns out, that was a role that only a real-life tragedy convinced him to play. Check out the interview below, and catch Warrior in theaters starting this Friday.

You give yourself a pretty good role in this. Did you just realize you were the only man for the role?

No, I wasn't at all. That was not intentional. Did you notice at the end of the film I dedicate it to Charles "Mask" Lewis? He was supposed to be playing that part. THe promoter was supposed to be masked, the guy who started his own tournament and that's who the part was for. And just before we started the film, I was doing pre-production in Pittsburgh, Charles got killed [Lewis died in a car accident in March 2009]. After a while i knew I had to recast it, and it was not an easy thing to do. I started down that road and several people who were in my life and knew how close i was to Charles said, "You should just play the part in honor of Charles." We just reimagined the character. That's the only reason I did it. I'm not Alfred Hitchcock or anything.

A lot of MMA fans come in wanting to see the violence, and you're making this film PG-13. How do you work with the violence, and where do you have to cut it off to get the rating and the audience you want?

I did my research in regard to how to make this PG-13 yet still give the film the intensity that I wanted to give it. Sometimes if you watch UFC fights they're bathed in blood. There's no blood in the movie. It's just so easy to do, to have blood. I love Martin Scorsese, I love Raging Bull, but the idea of, you know, splatters of blood landing on people in the stands, I just have no desire to do that. I don't think it's necessary to capture the beauty of the sport. There's such grace and athleticism and spirituality in MMA, I thought maybe blood would displace that.

Do you find that people are more hesitant to embrace MMA, or see the art in it, because it's such a new sport?

The movie is not about MMA-- that's just the backdrop of the film-- but that being said it's definitely a hurdle. We learned this at the first test screenings. A lot of people who came to the test screening either knew nothing about MMA, had no interest in MMA, or had a preconception of what MMA is. So that's a big obstacle. But after our first test screening, our highest scores were with women. The next day I went to the studio, and I literally walked into the conference room and they said, "You made a chick flick."

How hard was it to talk Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton not just into the training this movie required, but to risk getting themselves seriously beaten up?

You cast it first and foremost for the characters outside the cage. All the qualities I was looking for for Tommy the character, Tom Hardy fit. And then the same for Brendan, Joel fit. I had to get a performance outside the cage. Then after that, these guys trained and worked out obsessively and got themselves in great shape, worked really hard at MMA. Then we took great care to make sure everything inside the cage was authentic.

Had you seen other roles of theirs that made you want them, or was it all in the audition process?

I hadn't seen either of them in anything. It was just the audition process and meeting them and hanging out with them.

And how did casting Nick Nolte compare to that? It seems his back story did play into why you cast him.

Anthony [Tambakis, the co-writer] and I wrote the part for Nick. He was always going to play Paddy. The previous movie I made, Pride and Glory, Nick was the father in that movie but he had to have reconstructive knee surgery and had to drop out right before filming. We were friends for almost two years leading up to that, and he and I remained friends. We wrote the part for Nick, obviously tapping into a lot of personal things. It was really just about Nick being emotionally prepared and courageous enough to go to the places he needed to go to capture a lot of regret and a lot of pain in this man's life.