Knives Out 4 is looking more likely following a positive update from writer/ director Rian Johnson. After the success of the first Knives Out film in 2019, Johnson continued his Benoit Blanc mystery franchise with two sequels, the most recent of which, Wake Up Dead Man, hit Netflix on December 12.
As Wake Up Dead Man remains a viewership hit on Netflix, Johnson now tells EW that he has some early thoughts regarding the story of a prospective Knives Out 4. “I have some basic, elemental, conceptual ideas,” the director says. “Like, ‘Okay, it’d be interesting if it were this kind of thing’ kernels.”
Johnson then clarifies that there are still a lot of story elements needed for another installment that he doesn’t have quite yet. “I don’t have actual concrete ideas,” he says. “I don’t have a theme yet, I don’t have a location. It’s really pretty vague, and I feel like it’s good to kinda keep it vague until I’m ready to actually sit down and write it.”
When Johnson does eventually sit down to write Knives Out 4, it sounds like the filmmaker will be continuing a trend from the three installments released thus far in terms of how the story and characters reflect the current climate in the U.S. Check out his comment below:
“Part of making these movies, for me, is reacting to the present moment, not necessarily with current events or politics or culture specifically, but in terms of what we’re all feeling in the world at that moment. The vibe check of the United States and the moment that we’re in.
“I like that these movies are not timeless, per se, and that they all have one foot in something that is common to all of us in our present moment. So, yeah, I don’t know. I have a vague notion, but trying to keep it vague until it’s time to actually do it.”
Wake Up Dead Man reviews have been glowing from critics, and the film currently sits at a strong 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, making it the second-highest-rated entry in the franchise. Knives Out (2019) still leads the pack at 97%, with Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) coming in third at 91%.
All three installments, then, have been overwhelmingly positively received. The movies are praised for their unpredictable narratives, strong ensemble casts, and Daniel Craig’s consistently charming performance as Blanc.
Wake Up Dead Man sees Craig’s private detective solving the murder of a priest in a small community, with Josh O’Connor, Josh Brolin, Glenn Close, Jeremy Renner, Andrew Scott, Mila Kunis, Kerry Washington, Daryl McCormack, Thomas Haden Church, Jeffrey Wright, and Cailee Spaeny, also starring. The film is part of a two-movie deal Johnson made with Netflix in 2021 in which the streamer landed the rights to two Knives Out sequels.
Contractually, then, there’s nothing on paper that ensures Knives Out 4 will happen. Considering the positive reception to all three installments and the viewership success of Glass Onion and Wake Up Dead Man, though, it seems likely that Netflix would be open to this franchise continuing.
While Johnson is evidently interested in making another Blanc murder mystery, it doesn’t sound like another Knives Out movie will be his next project. The filmmaker told Empire in October that his next movie, which is still in the idea stage, “harkens back to the ’70s paranoid thrillers,” and that it has “a light sci-fi element to it.”
As for whether Craig would be interested in returning as Blanc, the actor has made clear that this is a role he’s happy to revisit. “As long as Rian keeps inventing it the way he does, then I’m in,” the actor recently told Radio Times.
Knives Out 4 may not be arriving in the near future, but the film certainly sounds like a matter of “when” and not “if”. It remains to be seen what the next Blanc mystery will entail, but this is clearly a franchise with some more gas in the tank.
