Warning! SPOILERS ahead for The Gray Man.
While Denny Carmichael serves as The Gray Man’s main antagonist, the CIA director suggests his unseen boss is the story’s true villain. Netflix’s 2022 movie The Gray Man follows Sierra Six (Ryan Gosling), whose real name is Court Gentry, a former prisoner-turned-CIA assassin who goes on the run after he’s given a drive containing dark secrets about the agency. As Carmichael (Regé-Jean Page) uses dubious methods to retrieve the drive by hiring the unpredictable mercenary Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans), it becomes clear that he’s not actually the most threatening foe Six still has to face.
When Lloyd is first asked by Carmichael to kill The Gray Man’s main character, Six, he questions whether the “Old Man” knows about his being hired. Carmichael responds that “heads would roll,” indicating that he’s not the CIA figure with the most influence. Later on, CIA Agent Suzanne Brewer (Jessica Henwick) also asks her colleague Carmichael if the Old Man is aware of the situation with Lloyd hunting down Six, with the character suggesting that Carmichael will lie to their boss about hiring the erratic Lloyd. However, by the time the agents are exonerated in The Gray Man’s ending, the secret CIA villain is never revealed.
In a perfect set-up for The Gray Man 2, the Russo brothers’ Netflix movie only dances around the identity of the big villain. It seems that Denny Carmichael serves as the face in charge of the CIA’s assassins while his feared boss pulls the strings from the shadows. Without a name or physical appearance from the Old Man, The Gray Man’s ending leaves it mysterious as to who Carmichael is really working for. While Fitzroy died after sacrificing himself to save Six and Claire’s lives in The Gray Man, it’s implied that he knew the true identity of the Old Man due to the fact that he was abruptly pushed out of the CIA in favor of the young and ambitious Carmichael. Since the backstory for Carmichael’s character differs from his past in The Gray Man books, it seems unlikely that the sequel will adapt the twist that his boss was a member of the Saudi Intelligence Service. Rather, The Gray Man 2’s villain is apt to be an original character whose influence in the CIA ties back to the now-deceased Fitzroy and Cahill.
Will The Gray Man 2 Reveal Carmichael's Boss?
Considering Brewer and Carmichael are expected to face consequences from the CIA after Six and Claire’s escape, the ending sets up the two characters to be reprimanded by their mysterious boss in The Gray Man 2. Although Carmichael destroyed the drive containing the incriminating information on his shady deals, these under-the-table actions were presumably ordered by the Old Man. As such, the unseen villain is likely to take matters into his own hands in The Gray Man sequel as the CIA’s corrupt employees seek to take out Sierra Six or anyone else who could expose their damning secrets.
The Gray Man’s ending certainly implies that the Old Man’s identity will be revealed in the next sequel, but it’s possible that Carmichael’s secret boss won’t be seen until later. The Russo brothers adapted The Gray Man for Netflix with the intention of launching a franchise, so should the first film warrant a sequel, the identity reveal of the Old Man could be saved for further down the line in Six’s story. Considering how many brand new twists The Gray Man movie featured, the identity of Carmichael’s boss is set to have big consequences for The Gray Man's Six and Claire's life on the run.