Netflix's The Old Guard 2 needs to better explain the mythology and world the first film set up. With the release of The Old Guard, Netflix has adapted Greg Rucka's comic book series into a potential movie franchise. Charlize Theron stars as Andy, an immortal who helps protect Earth, and the film has already proven to be quite the hit. It is one of Netflix's biggest movies and is undoubtedly sparking conversation about what The Old Guard 2 could look like.
Not only is The Old Guard proven to attract viewers, but the Netflix blockbuster also received mostly positive reviews from critics and audiences alike. With Theron in the lead, most were pleased to see The Old Guard deliver the same exciting action scenes she's become known for. Meanwhile, Gina Prince-Bythewood's direction led to solid characters and relationships, making the immortal mercenary group easy to like. The strengths of The Old Guard are many, but it does falter when it comes to the mythology, making this an obvious element that can be improved with The Old Guard 2.
In setting up the world of The Old Guard, the movie quickly gets viewers accustomed to the idea of immortals and their mission to protect humanity, but the background for these ideas (and more) aren't adequately explained. It works just fine for the first film - as it puts the attention on the characters and story at hand - but it also leaves a lot of unanswered questions. Now that audiences know who Andy, Nile (Kiki Layne), and the rest of the group are, The Old Guard 2 will be able to go deeper into the past.
The lack of details in the first film on the mythology and world of The Old Guard could be purposeful, though. The ending of the movie clearly sets up what The Old Guard 2's story will be about, and the mythology of this universe will have to come into play. With Quynh escaping the underwater containment, the sequel can provide more background on the first immortal that Andy found. This could shed light on the process of new immortals being discovered. The movie also ends without revealing why Andy lost her immortality and if she can get it back. If those questions are addressed in The Old Guard 2, it is probable that an exploration of mythology would be needed to do so.
None of this would excuse The Old Guard from withholding these details until a sequel, but it could make the decision a bit easier to understand. The grand scheme of the story could start to unfold and lead the way for an entire trilogy of Old Guard films. After all, the movies haven't even revealed how or why Andy became the first immortal and left plenty of room for future stories to span multiple time periods. And should the sequel dive deeper into the mythology of this world, there's a strong likelihood that more questions will be raised for future installments (or a TV spinoff) of The Old Guard to answer.