While the action comedy film "Wolfs" recently became the most-viewed movie in Apple TV+ history, plans for a sequel have been canceled.
In an interview shared by Deadline today, Wolfs director Jon Watts said he canceled the sequel because he "no longer trusted" Apple as a creative partner.
Watts told the publication that Apple made a last-minute decision to pivot away from widely releasing the movie in theaters, without discussing that decision with him in advance. He also said that Apple ignored his request to not mention the planned "Wolfs" sequel in its press release regarding the movie switching to a limited, one-week theatrical release before becoming available to stream on Apple TV+.
Apple announced that a "Wolfs" sequel was planned in an August press release. Apple's head of feature films Matt Dentler said the company was "excited to see fans embrace the movie as we start working with Jon on the sequel."
Here is the full quote from Watts explaining why the sequel is off the table:
"I showed Apple my final cut of Wolfs early this year," Watts told Deadline. "They were extremely enthusiastic about it and immediately commissioned me to start writing a sequel. But their last minute shift from a promised wide theatrical release to a streaming release was a total surprise and made without any explanation or discussion. I wasn't even told about it until less than a week before they announced it to the world. I was completely shocked and asked them to please not include the news that I was writing a sequel. They ignored my request and announced it in their press release anyway, seemingly to create a positive spin to their streaming pivot. And so I quietly returned the money they gave me for the sequel. I didn't want to talk about it because I was proud of the film and didn't want to generate any unnecessary negative press. I loved working with Brad and George (and Amy and Austin and Poorna and Zlatko) and would happily do it again. But the truth is that Apple didn’t cancel the Wolfs sequel, I did, because I no longer trusted them as a creative partner."
This drama might be enough for an Apple TV+ movie of its own!
"Wolfs" stars Brad Pitt and George Clooney as two professional "fixers" who are assigned to cover up a high-profile crime. The two "lone wolves" are forced to work together, despite not wanting to, and comedy ensues. The movie also stars Amy Ryan.
The movie debuted in select theaters on September 20, and on Apple TV+ a week later.
Watts is best known for directing the "Spider-Man" films within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Top Rated Comments
To Apple's credit, they made the right decision: the film was a direct-to-streaming film despite its two A-listers. I enjoyed it at home but I wouldn't have watched it in theatres. Still, they should've communicated that to those who made the film expecting it to be a theatrical release.
If Apple gets a reputation for pulling these kinds of stunts, they'll find themselves without talented filmmakers soon enough.
I haven’t seen this movie (I already cancelled Apple TV+ after they reversed their course on giving Jon Stewart full editorial control). But I think Apple could definitely do better here. There are fantastic shows and movies, but if you pull stunts like this one, nobody is gonna trust you to make great content.