After “Plane” took off at theaters this January, a followup film is already hitting the high seas. “Ship,” a sequel to the Gerard Butler thriller, is set to begin production later this year, Variety reports.
As the title suggests, “Ship” will be set on a boat, and focuses on Mike Colter’s character from the original “Plane,” fugitive and homicide suspect Louis Gaspare. It’s unclear if Butler, who led “Plane” as commercial pilot Brodie Torrance, will return to the project, either in a supporting role or a cameo appearance, but original director Jean-François Richet will be back as an executive producer.
In the original “Plane,” Gaspare was one of the passengers on Flight 119, a standard international trip that turned into a disaster after a storm causes major aircraft damage, forcing Torrance to land in the rebel-controlled Philippine island Jojo. The film saw the two men team up to save the crew and passengers on the flight after they’re kidnapped by warlord Datu Junmar (Evan Dane Taylor), and ended with Gaspare staying behind on the island to let Torrance escape before disappearing into the wilderness.
“Ship” picks up immediately where the first film left off, with Gaspare commandeering a fishing boat to escape the Philippines. Now the subject of an international manhunt after the media attention gained by Flight 119, Gaspare winds up on a cargo ship bound for South Africa, only to discover it doubles as a ferry for a human trafficking ring. Together with the ship’s second mate and a passenger with military experience, Gaspare embarks on a mission to take down the vessel’s captain and liberate the captives. Presumably, it will also act as set up a third film in the franchise, “Train.”
“Plane” producers MadRiver Pictures, Di Bonaventura Pictures, and G-BASE Productions will all serve as the studios on “Ship.” CAA Media Finance will handle the film’s domestic rights, and The Veterans will shop the film’s international rights at the European Film Market, which is scheduled to begin Thursday alongside the Berlin Film Festival. A director and writer for the sequel have not yet been announced.
Lionsgate distributed the original “Plane,” which has grossed $43 million worldwide on a $25 million budget since its January 13 opening. The film received relatively positive reviews upon release; in his review, IndieWire Chief Film Critic David Ehrlich called the thriller “sturdy, weathered, and no-frills.”
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