Exclusive: Gareth Evans on his potential concept for The Raid 3

This Friday, Havoc, the long-awaited return to action cinema for The Raid director Gareth Evans, finally premieres! The bullet-ridden ode to the 80s Hong Kong heroic bloodshed genre popularized by John Woo will premiere on Netflix, and audiences will finally see what Evans and his star Tom Hardy have cooked up. While my review drops tomorrow, I can confidently state that fans won’t be disappointed. Recently, I had the chance to talk with Evans about Havoc, and while I’ll have more from that interview later this week, he did spill the beans on whether or not he’s ever going to make the long-rumoured The Raid 3.

While Evans has suggested in the past that it might be wise to let the first two films stand on their own, he did reveal that at one time he had a concept for a third film that would have taken place moments after The Raid 2. However, given that the last film came out eleven years ago, Evans said he had to let that idea go, and he didn’t want to lead fans on.

“I’ve been hesitant to kind of dangle the card of a Raid 3 because I’ve had so much love and support from the core fan base of The Raid 1 & 2. And I’ve always felt like, oh shit, I should never really mention The Raid 3 unless I genuinely was going to make it”,  says Evans, adding, “The support for that franchise, it deeply touches me. So I don’t wanna f*ck around with the fan base and promise something that I can’t deliver.”

Yet, he also revealed that he and star Iko Uwais have been in constant contact over the years through WhatsApp, but it was only two years ago that they were able to reunite in person after a seven-year separation, due largely to the pandemic. “There was something different about this time when we met each other compared to the last time, which was that I saw him differently. Like he’s grown and he’s matured and he’s experienced a lot of life, and it was just a different sort of experience meeting him. And so yeah, the original concept would never work now because so much time has passed. But it gave me a new concept in mind. And so yeah, maybe it is time at some point to reopen that door and consider something. Like, I definitely have an idea. I definitely have a concept in mind for it. So, that might happen a little bit further down the line.”

Evans was also quick to add that even if The Raid 3 never happens, it doesn’t mean that he and Uwais wouldn’t do something else together.  “If it’s not The Raid 3, it’ll definitely be something because I’m just chomping at the bit to work with him again, and see if I can bring anything that I’ve lived during the time away from him and see what he could bring in the time that he’s been away from me to merge those together on a project that could be exciting to kind of get together again.”

Evans also teased his next project by saying, “I have kind of begun pre-production on a new film that we’re hoping to shoot this summer.” When asked to elaborate, with tongue firmly in cheek, he added, “I can’t say any more about it just yet, unfortunately, but as anyone familiar with my work will attest to, it’s another delightful rom-com with nothing violent happening whatsoever. and certainly no guns fired, or any of that.”

Havoc hits Netflix on Friday. Expect more from our chat with Gareth Evans later this week!

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