Rian Johnson breaks down how his approach to the Knives Out sequel, Glass Onion, is extremely different from his approach to Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Johnson hasn't made it a habit to revisit his previous work through sequels. The Last Jedi was the director's first foray into sequels, although he was expanding upon a story that J.J. Abrams began. Glass Onion is his first true sequel as he continues the adventures of Benoit Blanc with a new mystery following the critical and box office success of Knives Out, and he signed a deal with Netflix to create two more Knives Out mysteries with Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc.
Glass Onion is the first of the two sequels, and unlike most, it only features the return of Craig as the lead. The other characters, setting, and story are completely separate from Knives Out. In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, Johnson explains how he approaches the Knives Out sequels as self-contained stories. He also shares what excites him about movies. Johnson has found a way to balance self-contained stories with new characters, settings, and surprising twists while connecting them through the thread of detective Benoit Blanc.
How was it tackling this type of sequel, where it’s not directly linked to any of the previous characters save for Blanc, versus something like The Last Jedi?
Rian Johnson: It was very, very different, but that's part of what appealed to me about it. I've never had the desire to do an actual sequel to anything I've made. I love endings. That's what I love about movies; endings. And I love that movies have a start, they have a finish, they're one object that is complete. There's great serialized storytelling, especially in television and increasingly in movies, but that's not what turns me on about stories. I like self-contained, beautiful objects. Once I engaged with the fact that these movies are that, as opposed to an ongoing story, I was like, “Oh, yeah.” And we can keep making more of these as long as each one has its own reason for being.
Can The Knives Out Franchise Last As Stand Alones?
This anthology approach to the franchise plays perfectly into the classic Agatha Christie-inspired mystery genre. With sequels, reboots, and franchises at the heart of Hollywood, Johnson's take on the Knives Out franchise is refreshing. With Benoit at the heart of each mystery, Johnson is able to bring together a star-studded cast playing completely new characters in Glass Onion with a unique mystery that has no connection to Knives Out. Glass Onion also explores a new setting on a Greek island rather than New England, as well as an entirely new dynamic between friends with new money as opposed to Knives Out's old-money family. This style of sequel allows audiences to instantly connect with the familiar character, Benoit Blanc, while being surprised by every twist and turn introduced by the new characters.
Johnson's approach to the Knives Out franchise means that each movie can be completely unique. The third installment will be unlike the first two, with Benoit Blanc as the only true connection between each story. This style also opens the door to more movies beyond these three if Johnson and Craig want to continue. While Benoit Blanc is the connective tissue between the Knives Out mysteries Johnson will not be making a prequel focusing on Blanc's origins. This allows for a slower revelation of Blanc over the course of the franchise and stays true to the genre, with the detectives never acting as the sole protagonist of the story.
Johnson is also bringing his whodunit mystery storytelling to the small screen with the upcoming Peacock series Poker Face. Given Johnson's love of self-contained stories, it makes sense that this series will follow the "case of the week" format, with Charlie Cale (Natasha Lyonne) being sucked into a new mystery each episode as she travels across the country. Franchises and television have become more serialized than ever, with many episodic series incorporating more serialized storylines. Johnson's self-contained approach to storytelling in Knives Out and Glass Onion means that the franchise has the potential for longevity, dependent solely on his and Craig's desire to continue while Johnson's upcoming series Poker Face could have similar endurance.