When we last sat down to talk to Nicolas Winding Refn, he
spoke about a project he was developing that would be set in Tokyo. He
mentioned a fondness for the Yakuza, suggesting that this film would find him
re-visiting a crime underworld similar to that in “Only God Forgives” and “Drive.”
But no one could have guessed it would be… a sequel to “Valhalla Rising”?
We spoke to Refn on the eve of the North American premiere
for “Only God Forgives” and he revealed that project was a re-teaming with “Valhalla Rising”
star Mads Mikkelsen, saying they had, “talked about revisiting the [One-Eye] character
from ‘Valhalla Rising’ again to kind of complete… because there’s a similarity
between ‘Valhalla Rising,’ ‘Drive’ and ‘Only God Forgives.’ But in a way I had
this idea of Mads Mikklesen to go back to the origins of this character. But make
the movie in Tokyo.”
When asked how this could be a sequel, Refn cryptically
said, “Tokyo is a world onto itself.” This didn’t seem to clear up exactly how
One Eye could emerge from the early Viking era to modern day Tokyo, so when
pressed, Refn teased that the film was, “About the future…”
While Refn begins work on the “Barbarella” television
series, it’s possible this could be his next film after “I Walk With The Dead,” as he’s long spoken about
his affinity for Tokyo. Whatever the case, it would be impossible for us to not
get excited at the thought of “Valhalla Rising 2: Tokyo Drift.”
“Only God Forgives” hits theaters July 19th.
