Tom Hanks is set to reprise his role as Commander Ernest Krause
Apple has given the green light to development of a sequel to 2020’s Greyhound. Star Tom Hanks and Playtone partner Gary Goetzman have signed a multi-year deal with Apple TV+.
Still in its infancy, Greyhound was a major boon for Apple TV+. In May 2020, Sony sold the streaming right of the film to Apple. The film rights sold for $70 million USD (roughly $94.8 million CAD).
The World War II action film gained a lot of traction for its star power and attachment to Hanks. The actor wrote the screenplay, inspired by the 1955 novel The Good Shepherd by C. S. Forester. Greyhound centres on Commander Ernest Krause of the US Navy and his assignment to command an escort group defending an Allied merchant ship convoy under attack by German subs.
The specific plot of the Greyhound sequel remains unknown.
The film was nominated for several prestigious awards, including the Critics Choice Movie Awards for ‘Best Visual Effects.’ Greyhound was recognized and awarded ‘Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing’ by the Golden Reel Awards.
Greyhound is not the only Apple TV+ project Hanks has worked on. More recently, the actor starred in the post-apocalyptic dystopian film Finch. While an established relationship has formed, there was a time when it appeared Hanks was a bit more hesitant about his film landing on digital platforms.
When Greyhound was sold and abandoned its theatrical release due to the pandemic, Hanks was very outspoken in expressing his “absolute heartbreak” that it wouldn’t be seen on the big screen. “I don’t mean to make angry my Apple overlords, but there is a difference in picture and sound quality,” Hanks said in an interview at the time.
Hanks may have swept those feelings under the rug since that time. Playtone, Hanks and Goetzman’s production company is now producing several series, unscripted projects, and documentaries for Apple TV+.
Aside from the projects featuring Hanks, Masters of the Air, a pseudo-follow-up to The Pacific and Band of Brothers, sees Apple and Playtone collaborating. Apple has not announced a specific release date for Masters of the Air. Though, it may release in late 2022.
The untitled Greyhound sequel does not have a release window currently.
Image credit: Apple
Source: Deadline