Doug Liman is preparing to square off with the sequel to his own film. It’s no secret that the director was deeply frustrated by the Prime Video streaming release of his 2024 Road House reboot starring Jake Gyllenhaal, hence his stepping back from the upcoming sequel. However, a new report reveals he’s going one step further, now preparing his own sequel that will be a direct follow-up to the 1989 Patrick Swayze classic. Titled Road House: Dylan, it’ll be based on a script penned by the original film’s writer, R. Lance Hill, which Liman optioned, and, most importantly, it won’t involve Amazon.
No details about the sequel are known outside of the creatives involved and the fact that there will be no connection to the Gyllenhaal-led film. Liman had been iffy about a sequel and outspoken against Amazon MGM since helming the action hit, decrying the company for refusing a theatrical release despite it testing well enough with audiences to suggest a run on the big screen could be successful. The director and his producer, Joel Silver, went all the way up the chain and even screened it for Jeff Bezos himself, yet it was all in vain. It marked a massive break-up, considering the remake following a UFC fighter turned bouncer at a Florida Keys bar was a knockout hit, becoming the most-watched produced film global debut for Prime Video with over 50 million viewers in its first two weeks.
Making another Road House sequel is a bit legally complicated, to say the least. Currently, a lawsuit is ongoing over the franchise’s ownership, filed on behalf of Hill. The scribe argues that he would’ve regained the rights to his original script from United Artists since 35 years had lapsed since he sold it. His team posits that he penned it independently as a spec script without studio supervision, which would mean that, under Section 203 of the U.S. Copyright Act, it would’ve fallen back under his ownership in November 2023. Amazon MGM, however, affirmed that, because the script was sold through Hill‘s loan-out corporation, it qualifies as a work-for-hire and thus wouldn’t be returned to him. That still has to play out, but Liman has effectively taken Hill‘s side in the rights battle, making his sequel another chapter in a bigger battle between two claims to the Road House throne.
What’s Happening With Jake Gyllenhaal’s ‘Road House 2’?
A legal battle only creates a bigger cloud around a sequel that’s already gone through plenty of upheaval. After Liman‘s exit, Road House 2 tapped Guy Ritchie to take the reins and bring his stylish action sensibilities to Dalton’s next chapter in what would’ve been his third collaboration with Gyllenhaal. However, he, too, dropped out back in July, ultimately resulting in the director’s chair being filled by Nobody helmer Ilya Naishuler. Since then, the cast around Gyllenhaal has taken shape, with Dave Bautista succeeding Conor McGregor as Dalton’s next big foe, with Leila George and Aldis Hodge also on board. Production is currently underway on the sequel.
via Collider