2013's Olympus Has Fallen was the surprise winner of that year's White House Attack-Off, and this March's sequel London Has Fallen did even more business at the box office. So don't even try to look surprised at the idea that Gerard Butler's Mike Banning will be back for a third run-around in Angel Has Fallen.
While Banning could be forgiven for just wanting a quiet life, it wouldn't be much of a movie if he was just playing with his daughter and binge-watching Netflix shows. But after two films spent protecting US President Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart), it's Mike who will need some protection – he'll be the target this time. And his attackers are unafraid to destroy chunks of Washington DC to get to him. As for the title, that refers to the codename for Air Force One, the President's plane. Which makes us think that Asher or his successor (Deadline's report makes no mention of Eckhart having boarded the film just yet) will also be having a bad day.
Writers Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt, who crafted the first film and had a hand in the second, are back on script duty for this one, with Butler among the producers. The hunt has likely already begun for a director to bring the usual pyrotechnics and punching to life, as Millennium Films wants the movie shooting next year.