Gerard Butler’s Long-Awaited $58.3 Million Crime Thriller Sequel Is Winning Over ‘Heat’ Fans

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Published Mar 2, 2026, 4:33 PM EST

Adam Blevins began working in the entertainment industry in 2022 as a Staff Writer for Agents of Fandom, where he progressed to Senior Editor and interviewed talent from Marvel Studios, House of the Dragon, and Planet of the Apes. He joined Collider as a News Author in April 2024, was promoted to a Senior position in December 2024, and has written over 3,000 articles for the site, including exclusives relating to Avengers: Doomsday, The Penguin, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, and more. He primarily writes about the latest box office numbers and the hottest movies and TV shows on streaming, while also covering superhero and sci-fi news. He has completed a set visit for The Chosen and even has several months of experience writing Gaming Features at ScreenRant. You can find him on X, LinkedIn, and Muckrack.

Gerard Butler has come under fire starting this year due to the poor reception and box office performance of his latest sci-fi thriller, Greenland 2: Migration. Many fans questioned if the film required a sequel in the first place due to the lukewarm box office results and reviews from the original, and these doubts were proven wrong when the film failed to gross even half its break-even point at the box office. Butler still has a lot to look forward to in the future, though, including the sequel to his live-action How to Train Your Dragon movie that’s now in production ahead of its 2027 release date. Butler is also due to begin shooting the third installment in his hit Den of Thieves heist franchise, and his co-star O’Shea Jackson Jr. is bulking up in preparation.

Last year, Gerard Butler returned to his signature role as Big Nick O’Brien in Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, the long-awaited sequel to his 2018 heist thriller. The first Den of Thieves movie wasn’t met with the strongest reception, but it did gross $80 million at the box office against a $30 million budget. Its sequel, however, grossed only $58 million against a $40 million budget, making it a much less profitable endeavor than its predecessor. The film did find redemption on streaming after its theatrical run, and it’s continuing to do so, where it’s in the Prime Video top 10 in several countries around the world. It’s still streaming on Netflix in America, where it’s been since a few months after it left theaters. Just like the original. Christian Gudegast wrote the script for Den of Thieves 2 and directed the film. Den of Thieves and its sequel are the perfect alternative for fans missing Michael Mann's Heat.

When Does ‘Den of Thieves 3’ Come Out?

Lionsgate confirmed that a third Den of Thieves movie was in development before Den of Thieves 2 was out of theaters, but there have been few updates on the film in the year since this announcement. Butler’s co-star, O’Shea Jackson Jr., confirmed last September that the film was about nine months away from starting production, and that he was getting into tip-top shape for the third movie. If Lionsgate is planning on sticking to its timeline, Den of Thieves 3 will begin filming this summer and will likely be released sometime next year or early 2028.

Check out Den of Thieves 2: Pantera on Netflix in America and stay tuned to Collider for more streaming updates.