Speed 2: Cruise Control Joining Speed on HBO Max

In recent days the hit action movie Speed has been making headlines and causing a stir online as film fans re-watch the movie or experience for the first time as it’s streaming on HBO Max. Though perhaps not done on purpose, it’s worth noting that among the many titles arriving on the streaming service in April is none other than its controversial sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control. The follow-up will debut on April 1 alongside other movies including Boogie Nights, The Mask of Zorro, Space Jam, The Warriors, and more. You can find the full list of titles arriving on HBO Max in April by clicking here.

The 1994 Speed saw Keanu Reeves star alongside Sandra Bullock in the action-thriller about a bomb on a bus, with Speed 2 arriving three years later (sans Reeves) and focused on a boat with a similar explosive predicament. Unlike the first film the sequel was critically panned and was even nominated for eight “Razzie” Awards including Worst Song, Worst Screenplay, Worst Director, Worst Supporting Actor (for Willem Dafoe), Worst Screen Couple, Worst Actress (for Bullock), and Worst Picture. The film did win one award, Worst Remake or Sequel,

Filmmaker Jan de Bont helmed both movies in the series with his last project as a director being 2003’s Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life. Speaking in an interview just last year however, de Bont opened up about the prospect of a third film and said he’s not entirely opposed to it if the right idea came along.

“It depends on how the story is, I think. Generally, I’m not a huge fan for sequels,” de Bont shared with Collider. “I had in my contract that I would do a sequel. If you have to, you have to have the cast to want to come back, too, because, otherwise, you have to tell a whole new movie. Because some of the first one was so much centered around him and about him, the awkwardness a little bit in him being a hero. And that awkwardness of being in a position to be a hero is … that worked really well for him but it doesn’t work well for other actors. And it’s really hard to find that same kind of feeling back.”

It’s worth noting that 20th Century Fox are the owners of the Speed franchise, which means that now The Walt Disney Company owns the films. At the time it seems a little unlikely that the House of Mouse would revive this property, but stranger things have happened!