Charlize Theron cites changes at Netflix for delays to ‘The Old Guard 2’
Charlize Theron has spoken about the delays to her upcoming action sequel The Old Guard 2, explaining how changeovers at Netflix led to post-production being pushed back.
Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, The Old Guard adapted Greg Rucka’s graphic novel series to screen and was released back in 2020. It starred Theron as the immortal Andy, while the supporting cast featured Chiwetel Ejiofor, Harry Melling, and KiKi Layne.
After the film performed well on Netflix, the streaming service confirmed a sequel in 2021. Victoria Mahoney took over directing duties, while Prince-Bythewood took on a producer role. Theron and her castmates would be joined by some huge newcomers, including Uma Thurman and Henry Golding.
Although shooting for the superhero sequel finished in autumn 2022, the film has yet to receive a release date. Now, Theron has explained the delays to the project during a conversation with Variety.
According to the star, progress on The Old Guard 2 was halted by changes behind-the-scenes at Netflix. “Netflix went through quite a changeover,” she explained, “We got kind of stuck in that and our post-production shut down, I think, five weeks into it.”
“They were going through a lot of changes,” she acknowledged, “and I totally understand it. We finally picked it back up and I’m really excited about it.”
The superhero star went on to emphasise her excitement about returning to the project, deeming it a “really important film to us.” “I only wanted to do it if we could make it amazing,” she added, “I really love this movie.”
Though the project seems to have been picked back up behind the scenes, a timeline for the release of The Old Guard 2 is still yet to be revealed.
The Old Guard isn’t the only series Theron is on track to revisit. The actor seems set to return to the character of Cipher one last time in the final instalment of the Fast & Furious franchise, Fast XI. The film was initially scheduled for release next year, but has since been pushed back to 2026.
In 2017, Theron made her first appearance as Cipher back in The Fate of the Furious. Since then, she has appeared in two more entries into the francise, F9 in 2021 and Fast X in 2023, showing off her mastery of the action genre each time.