Ryan Goslingmade headlines in 2023 thanks to his performance as Ken inBarbie, but nearly 10 years ago he showed off his comedy chops in a hilarious buddy cop flick that’s currently streaming on Netflix. Gosling stars alongsideRussell CroweinThe Nice Guys, the 2016 bumbling detective thriller that earned scores of 91% from critics and 79% from audiences onRotten Tomatoes, but grossed only $71 million at the worldwide box office against a $50 million budget, meaning it failed to hit its break-even point and ultimately cost much more than it earned. During a recent interview with Collider’s ownAidan Kelleyat the Saturn Awards,The Nice GuysdirectorShane Blackspoke about the chances of reuniting Gosling and Crowe for a potential sequel toThe Nice Guys. While he isn’t jumping to come back, he also wouldn’t rule it out either:
“There is a chance, but it requires a great deal of things to go right at the same time because there are legalities, and there’s also the fact that, honestly, the first movie didn’t make a lot of money.And the next one will probably cost a great deal. So you go ‘Hey, you want to make a sequel to this?’ and they say ‘How much?’ ‘$100 million.’ ‘No.’ Buthopefully someday. I think there’s enough generated awareness and enthusiasm.”
There’s a lot to unpack here, but first and foremost, Black is 100% correct that a sequel toThe Nice Guyswould cost a fortune to make, and with the state of the box office in 2025, where it’s impossible to predict what’s going to hit or miss, it would certainly be an additional risk to mitigate. Gosling and Crowe have both found major box office success in their careers, Crowe withGladiatorin 2000 and Gosling withBarbiein 2023, but the two have also starred in box office misses over the years, such asThe Fall GuyandKraven the Hunter.The Nice Guyshas certainly become more popular in the nine years since its release thanks to streaming, but bringing a sequel to theaters that would need to gross north of $150 million to be a profit likely isn’t enticing for any studio.
What Else Is Coming Up for Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe?
Gosling recentlycompleted production onProject Hail Mary, the upcoming space sci-fi epic that is an adaptation ofAndy Weir’s famous novel, and he has also been tapped fora role inShawn Levy’sStar Warsmovie. As for Crow, he’ll next be seen inNuremberg, the upcoming historical thrillerthat also starsRami MalekandMichael Shannon, and he has also been tapped for a role inBeast in Me, the upcoming sports drama that also starsLuke Hemsworth.
The Nice Guysstars Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe and was directed by Shane Black. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates on a potential sequel and watchThe Nice GuysonNetflix.
The Nice Guys
