You ever wake to see an internet rumor that you hope beyond hope will be true? That’s how I felt, seeing people on BlueSky talking about a sequel to 2005’s Constantine, a Keanu Reeves vehicle about the DC Comics/Vertigo demonologist antihero from the Hellblazer universe. I ran to YouTube, where someone said I would find a trailer. What I found there was fan-made and without flavor, giving me the AI-ick of gum already chewed. I dug deeper.
So, is the sequel real?
The answer is: kind of. Constantine 2 is like a very early pregnancy; something might come of it, but it’s too early to send out notices.
- Peter Stormare, who played Lucifer in the 2005 film, said as recently as 2020 that a sequel was in the works. Stormare’s devil is only on screen for the last ten minutes of the original, but it’s a memorable performance that could be duplicated by absolutely no one else.
- In 2023, Warner Bros confirmed that Constantine shall rise again, sharing that J.J. Abrams and Hannah Minghella are signed on to produce.
- Akiva Goldsman (I am Legend, Batman Forever, Practical Magic) is listed as the project’s screenwriters on the IMDB page for the forthcoming film.
- Keanu Reeves is set to return as the lead, John Constantine, because he’s not aging in any normal human way, and the character is (spoiler!) given a second chance to live at the end of the 2005 film by a joint effort between God and the devil that is simultaneously touching, funny, and a clear illustration of how life is mostly suffering.
Here’s what we don’t know, because there’s no sonogram on this demon pregnancy: no trailer, no teaser, no poster to hang on the fridge.
- Co-star of the original film Rachel Weisz has made no statement as to whether she would return. As talented as she is, it’s hard to watch her play a cop.
- Apprentice to Constantine’s sorcerer Chas Kramer was played by Shia LaBeouf in the original but he (spoiler!) dies in the final fight. Though a post-credit scene shows Constantine observing the ghost of his fallen Robin after the meat-life has ended, it’s unlikely we’ll see this character again. This is especially dodgy considering LaBeouf’s ongoing personal and legal problems.
- In one of the greatest casting coups of all time, the angel Gabriel is played by Tilda Swinton in the 2005 action film. Swinton brings a gracile androgyny and simmering menace to the role of the double agent of heaven and hell and ends the film (spoiler! Angels fall sometimes!) defrocked, defanged, dewinged, and demented. It would be a shame to waste that arc, or to waste the unfathomable talent of Swinton.
- Djimon Hounsou as Papa Midnite is another bright spot of the first film, running a nightclub for beings who are more or less than human. The character represents the balanced and unbiased parts of the underworld, and Hounsou offers both curses and prayers as a complex depiction of a fascinating side-player. He’s a corner pocket for exposition and hopefully Goldsman sinks that shot.
- Musician Gavin Rossdale tried out his acting legs as Balthazar, a demon who’s entirely unnecessary to the plot and forgettable as a performer. Audiences certainly aren’t clamoring for more, so hopefully he stays home and keeps everything zen.
We may not know when we’re going to see Constantine again, and we may be doomed to rewatch the original without a single sign of salvation. We’ll have to remember what the man himself told us: “Heaven and hell are right here, behind every wall, every window, the world behind the world. And we’re smack in the middle.”
Between a cult classic and a possible revival. Between a bad and brief TV show and a great, long-running comic book. Between Peter Stormare’s devil and a faceless, voiceless god.
Will Constantine come again?
Let us pray.
