The Most Epic Fantasy and Sci-Fi Website

Constantine 2 Director Determined to Make Keanu Reeves Sequel R-Rated


Constantine
Credit: WB

The Keanussance isn't going to fizzle out anytime soon as Keanu Reeves is set to continue his adventures as occult detective John Constantine over at the DC Universe. In case you weren't aware, a second Constantine film that follows the events of the 2005 classic is already in the works over at Warner Bros. Discovery with director Francis Lawrence and producer Akiva Goldsman set to reunite.

Constantine
click to enlarge
Credit: WB


As it stands, we still don't know if the sequel will fall under James Gunn and Peter Safran's "new' DCU but Lawrence isn't stressing about its place in the canon. What he would like to happen though is for Constantine 2 to go the R-rated route and it looks like he's determined to turn the idea into a reality.

Speaking with The Wrap, Lawrence recalls his biggest regret with the first one which was originally given a PG-13 rating. He explains: "One of the biggest things for me about the first one was we followed, per Warner Bros., the rules to make a PG-13 movie in terms of violence, blood, language, sexuality. But the ratings board gave us a hard R based on their gray zone of intensity."

The director added: "And my big, big regret was that we have an R-rated movie that's really a PG-13 movie. And if I was going to have to go have an R, I would have really made an R-rated movie. I would have made it much scarier and much more violent and I would have really made an R-rated movie."

Lawrence is hopeful that Constantine 2 will be given an R-rating which he believes is what the fans want to see. "The idea is this time, at least for me, is to really go at it and make a real R-rated Constantine which is, I think, what people always wanted originally, not the PG-13 version that just happens to get an R."

Also Read: Constantine Reboot Series Cancelled on HBO Max After Keanu Reeves Sequel Announcement

It's still a little too early to tell if Lawrence's request will actually be granted but we all know for a fact that DC Studios co-head James Gunn is all ears when it comes to creative suggestions.

Meanwhile, the original Constantine movie is available to stream on HBO Max.

For more articles like this, take a look at our DC and Geek Culture page.