Knives Out 2 Set Photos Reveal Ethan Hawke Casting and More

It looks like Ethan Hawke and have joined the already stacked cast of Knives Out 2. Production on Knives Out 2 began yesterday, with director Rian Johnson sharing the first photo from the set in Greece. New set photos reveal previously unannounced cast members Hawke and working on the production. There are also photos of known cast members Daniel Craig, Kathryn Hahn, Dave Bautista, and Kate Hudson. Craig returns as investigator Benoit Blanc digging into a new murder mystery. This will be the first Knives Out sequel, with another already in the works for Netflix as part of the streamer’s $400-million deal with Johnson.

The Knives Out 2 cast includes Bautista, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Hudson, Madelyne Cline, and Jessica Henwick. Bautista spoke about the film earlier this year.

“It’s way too early, but, I have to say, I talk to Rian and I’m very familiar with his film career and the big films that he’s done,” Bautista said of the movie during an interview with Vulture. “But what I was so excited to talk to him about was his episodes of Breaking Bad, because I’m a huge Breaking Bad fan. Watching the stuff that he did with Breaking Bad, those are the kinds of really interesting directorial performances that I’m excited about. I want to get some of that direction.”

The first Knives Out movie grossed $311.4 million worldwide on a $40 million budget when it opened in 2019. It garnered critical acclaim, earning three Academy Award nominations, including for Best Musical or Comedy. The original film’s cast included Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, and Christopher Plummer. Only Craig is expected to return for the sequels.

“I’m actually writing another Knives Out,” Johnson explained to Interview Magazine in 2020. “It’s been such a mindf-ck, because I sat on the idea for the first one for 10 years. And with this one, I’m starting with a blank page. It’s not really a Knives Out sequel. I need to come up with a title for it so I can stop calling it The Knives Out Sequel because it’s just Daniel Craig as the same detective with a totally new cast.”

What do you think of Ethan Hawke joining the Knives Out 2 cast? Let us know in the comments.

[UPDATE: An earlier version of this article cited The Daily Mail‘s report that Jada Pinkett-Smith was spotted on the set of the film. That report was incorrect. We apologize for the error.]