As well as establishing a raft of its own franchises, Netflix has never been entirely against the idea of acquiring somebody else’s property and building it out, even if it has taken half a decade for Believer 2 to finally make it onto screens.
The original – which was itself a remake of Chinese crime thriller Drug War – was a sizeable box office success when it hit Korean theaters back in May of 2018. In addition to notching almost $40 million in ticket sales, it became the fastest-selling title of the year after racking up three million admissions in less than two weeks, becoming the first on the calendar to surpass five million in total.
With that in mind, it’s understandable why a second chapter would be given the green light, even if it is somewhat strange it’s being distributed as a Netflix exclusive as opposed to trying to replicate its predecessor’s box office success. Either way, the first trailer has arrived, confirming a Nov. 17 debut.
Picking up from where the original left off, Believer 2 will follow an investigation linked to a notorious drug-running cartel, which also happens to coincide with a missing persons case. Along the way, the footage promises that blood, bullets, and octane will be in the highest of supply.
Korean content has been a bountiful source of viewership for Netflix dating back years, so the smart money would be on a fast-paced and frantic crime story making a sizeable splash when it lands a full five years on from the first movie in just a matter of weeks.