Gerard Butler, a proven action movie star, has replaced a major franchise with Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. Over a decade after his leading role in 300, Butler remains a significant draw for action films. The original Den of Thieves was a surprise box office hit, grossing over $80 million worldwide with a medium-sized budget. Its success has now made it a franchise, expanding Butler’s number of action franchises, similar to Jason Statham and Liam Neeson.
Before Den of Thieves 2, Butler had already been part of a successful action franchise with the Has Fallen trilogy, which grossed $523 million worldwide. He reprised his role as Mike Banning in three films: Olympus Has Fallen (2013), London Has Fallen (2016), and Angel Has Fallen (2019). The Has Fallen movies received mixed reviews, but they had bigger box office hauls.
Butler’s increased focus on action movies in the last decade has been an attempt to replicate this success. He has now done just that with the Den of Thieves franchise. Den of Thieves 2 opened at number one at the box office with a $15 million haul, putting it in the same range as the original film. The early returns are promising, and the Den of Thieves movies are now proven to bring audiences to theaters for the latest Butler-starring heist film.
Despite the success of Den of Thieves, Butler is not ready to abandon his other lucrative action franchise completely. It is already confirmed that he will reprise his role as Mike Banning in the fourth installment of the Has Fallen series, known as Night Has Fallen. The plot details and release date are not yet confirmed, but the sequel is expected to move forward, with hopes of even more films beyond that also existing.
Balancing two franchises is feasible for someone like Butler, but Den of Thieves seems to be where he has a brighter future. Has Fallen has taken the path to begin to replace him, as the TV series Paris Has Fallen allowed the franchise to grow without him. There are no immediate plans to get rid of Big Nick, the character Butler plays in Den of Thieves, so he should continue to be a fundamental character in future installments. And with the last Has Fallen movie in decline at the box office, it’s unclear how much life this franchise has left.