With the largely male audience for action movies featuring brutal anti-heroes having moved seamlessly from theaters to streaming, there could be no better time for Denzel Washington to return to his most successful franchise. Washington previously confirmed that he was doing exactly that when he announced not one but two new sequels to his hit trilogy of action movies. However, recent developments might throw a wrench in those plans. Washington’s franchise was helmed by Antoine Fuqua, who recently delivered the biggest hit of his career with Michael, the Michael Jackson biopic that’s on track to hit the $1 billion mark at the global box office. A few weeks ago, Lionsgate confirmed that a long-rumored sequel was being fast-tracked. One would assume that the studio wants Fuqua to return, which may keep him busy for the next couple of years.
Meanwhile, Washington isn’t getting any younger. He’s now 71, and if he begins shooting the next couple of installments once Fuqua is done with the Michael sequel, he’ll be closer to 75. The action franchise could continue with a new filmmaker, but this hasn’t been confirmed. We’re talking, of course, about Washington’s The Equalizer series, which began in 2014 and delivered its third installment in 2023. The franchise was green-lit not long after the success of Taken, which turned Liam Neeson into an action star. Taken‘s success inspired several other older male actors to try their hand in the genre.
Here’s When You Can Watch ‘The Equalizer’ Trilogy
Washington remains arguably the most successful. The three Equalizer movies have grossed nearly identical amounts at the box office, for a combined global haul of more than $570 million. The latest installment, The Equalizer 3, made $191 million worldwide against a reported budget of $70 million. The first movie grossed $192 million worldwide against a reported budget of $55 million. It holds a 61% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the consensus reads, “The Equalizer is more stylishly violent than meaningful, but with Antoine Fuqua behind the cameras and Denzel Washington dispensing justice, it delivers.” All three movies in The Equalizer series are now streaming on HBO Max. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
- Release Date
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September 24, 2014
- Runtime
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132 minutes
- Writers
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Richard Wenk, Richard Lindheim, Michael Sloan
- Producers
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Alex Siskin, Denzel Washington, Ezra Swerdlow, Jason Blumenthal, Mace Neufeld, Michael Sloan, Richard Wenk, Steve Tisch, Todd Black, Tony Eldridge, Ben Waisbren
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