It’s already looking like Rian Johnson’s highly anticipatedNetflix-exclusive sequelKnives Out 2will be just as packed to the brim with big names as its predecessor. Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc will now be in some particularly charming company, as actress and singer/songwriter Janelle Monáe has joined the cast of the murder mystery follow-up. This movie sounds like exactly what the moviegoing public needs right now.
Monáe may not even be the latest to lend her talents to the film, as casting announcements seem to be dropping almost daily at this point. So by the time this sentence is done, another will probably join the fray. But at the moment, she’ll be joining therecently confirmed Kathryn Hahn inKnives Out 2, which already rivaling the stacked deck of heavy-hitting stars seen in the firstKnives Out. There are bound to be even more big names added to the list, so the fact that it’s already got such an enviable group is nothing to sneeze at.
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The casting of Monáe is just the latest in the actress' growing list of high-profile credits. Already a hugely popular star in the music world, she got her name on the acting map with substantial roles in films likeHidden FiguresandMoonlight, establishing herself as a force to be reckoned with on several fronts. Here’s hoping she’ll have some amusingly eccentric interactions withDave Bautista, who was also recently cast inKnives Out 2and is also very difficult to miss in a crowded room.
Knives Out 2is the much-awaited sequel to 2019’sKnives Out, which gathered its own eclectic cast of murder suspects played by stars like Jamie Lee Curtis and Chris Evans. Any of them could have stolen the show in another movie, but combining them all with Craig’s enjoyable and almost campy detective Benoit Blanc made it so there was almost no real stand-out star, and that’s a good thing. Created as a love letter to classic murder mysteries likeMurder on the Orient Expressand any number of Agatha Christie novels,Knives Outproved that the genre is still alive and kicking.
Adding Monáe to thecast which also includesFight Clubstar Edward Nortonwill only make the wait forKnives Out 2that much more difficult. When the first film released in 2019, audiences couldn’t stop talking about it for months afterward. Whether it be from pointing out little details other viewers might have missed (a Johnson specialty) or the countless memes that persist to this day, the film has established a legacy that would doubtless stick around even if it weren’t for the upcoming sequel.
There’s stillplenty to look forward to regarding theKnives Outsequels(yes, that’s plural), so even if these casting announcements slow down, hungry fans can rest assured there will be more to chow down on in due time. Maybe speculation can be focused on how Craig will top his donut speech.
