The new buzz says Amazon MGM secured the worldwide distribution rights to The Beekeeper 2

Fresh off of directing the Bob Odenkirk action sequel Nobody 2 (which is now in post-production) for Universal, Timo Tjahjanto has signed on to direct the Jason Statham action sequel The Beekeeper 2. Filming on the Statham movie is expected to begin this fall. It was previously reported that the movie will, again, be made under the new Weinstein-less Miramax label, but Deadline now reveals that Amazon MGM has just secured the rights to distribute the sequel worldwide. Their sources say this new deal has cost somewhere above the realm of $50 million.

Directed by David Ayer from a screenplay written by Kurt Wimmer, The Beekeeper was an incredibly wild action flick that showed us what happens when one man’s brutal campaign for vengeance takes on national stakes after he is revealed to be a former operative of a powerful and clandestine organization known as “Beekeepers.” Statham played a character named Adam Clay, a retired clandestine human intelligence operative who sets out for revenge after his kind-hearted landlady becomes the victim of a phishing scam that steals millions of dollars from a charity she runs. Wimmer also wrote the screenplay for the sequel, but plot details have not yet been revealed.

Ayer reteamed with Statham for the film A Working Man, which came out in theaters a couple months ago and is now available on digital. While he won’t be at the helm of The Beekeeper 2 because he’s currently in production on the Brad Pitt movie The Heart of the Beast, the studio and filmmakers are hoping to get him involved with the sequel in a producing capacity.

In addition to the upcoming Nobody 2, Tjahjanto’s directing credits include The Shadow Strays, The Night Comes for Us, The Big 4, Headshot, May the Devil Take You, and May the Devil Take You Too. So he has experience making some badass, hard-hitting action movies (and some creepy horror flicks, too).

Statham won’t just be reprising the role of Adam Clay for the new movie, as he’s also producing The Beekeeper 2 through his Punch Palace Productions shingle, while Chris Long is producing through Long Shot Productions. Made on a budget of $40 million, the first film earned more than $152 million at the global box office.

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