Full steam ahead.
All aboard for a Murder on the Orient Express sequel. Fox has recently announced that Death on the Nile will be the next Agatha Christie novel to be adapted into a film.
Death on the Nile was published in 1937 and was first adapted into a film of the same name in 1978. It starred Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot and won the Oscar for Best Costume Design. The story takes place in Egypt, as the infamous detective is on holiday when he stumbles upon a love triangle that has gone wrong and resulted in murder.
Fox has hired screenwriter Michael Green — who penned Murder on the Orient Express, as well as Blade Runner 2049 and Logan — to return for Death on the Nile.
Kenneth Branagh — who directed and starred in the first film — has not yet signed on to the sequel, but — according to Variety — is expected to at some point in the near future. It’s not yet known whether he’ll return to direct as well, or just to reprise his role of the quirky yet brilliant investigator.
“I’d love to play Poirot again and that’s [Death on the Nile] a very, very passionate book about obsessive love,” Branagh told Cinema Blend. “So it’s very dangerous. And given that we have a Poirot who has this mysterious relationship to Katherine. Who is she? What is she? And where does he sit when it comes to the world of romance — beyond the hint that it never goes unpunished? I think there’s gold in them thar hills if we get the chance.”
The news isn’t terribly shocking as Murder on the Orient Express has made over $53 million domestically and upwards of $101 in the foreign market, via Box Office Mojo. Considering the film had only a $55 million production budget, it was a huge financial success for the studio.
There was also a slight easter-egg towards the end of Murder hinting towards the possibility of a Death on the Nile reincarnation.
Seeing how Death on the Nile was just announced, there is no release date for the film yet. The project, however, is being overseen by Steve Abel of Fox. Let us know in the comments below if you're excited to see Branagh take on Poirot another time in a Death on the Nile adaptation.
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