Catherine Keener is headed for the cutthroat, morally grey world of crooked cops and drug wars.
Deadline is reporting that the actress, who had roles in both November Criminals and family drama Little Pink House, has climbed aboard Soldado, the embryonic action sequel to last year’s visceral narcotics thriller Sicario. Joining forces with Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin – Emily Blunt sadly won’t be returning for the follow-up – Keener has landed the role of Brolin’s superior, and together they’ll work to police the network of Mexican tunnels used by drug lords to cross the border into America.
Brolin’s questionable CIA agent Matt Graver is by no means a straight shooter, so it’ll be interesting to see which side of the moral spectrum Keener’s boss character hails from. Our guess? One of those inky grey areas between right and wrong.
Upon answering the call for Blade Runner 2049 – not to mention imminent sci-fi movie Arrival – Denis Villeneuve won’t direct Soldado; instead, that mantle has been passed to newcomer Stefano Sollima, who will be directing from a script penned by Taylor Sheridan following his work on the nail-biting original. Benicio Del Toro, meanwhile, will be stepping back into the delightfully dark role of Alejandro Gillick, a magnetic, shadowy enforcer.
Should the pieces fall into place, Soldado could be the second entry into a trilogy of anthology movies, with Villeneuve and Taylor Sheridan seemingly already drafting up story ideas for a third movie. What can we expect from this new installment? It’s Sicario “on steroids,” according to Sheridan.