We mentioned in passing a few weeks ago that there were rumours Robert De Niro was interested in making a sequel to his 1988 crime comedy, Midnight Run. Now Deadline reports that it is indeed happening and things are moving forward, with Universal hiring Tim Dowling (Role Models, Just Go With It) to write the follow-up.
The sequel will see De Niro reprising his role as Chicago cop turned Los Angeles-based bounty hunter Jack Walsh, who in the first film hunted down Charles Grodin’s turncoat mob accountant. There no news on the plot for the follow-up, although it is known that Grodin, who’s retired from acting, won’t be back.
However the real question is why make a Midnight Run sequel 22 years after the original? While the film was a decent sized hit, it’s not the sort of classic that’s going to mean much to younger generations, nor something anyone – except perhaps Universal and De Niro – has been crying out for a sequel for. There’s no reason they shouldn’t make a follow-up, it just seems a bit odd.