Rian Johnson's Next Film: A Sci-Fi Thriller Inspired By '70s Paranoid Thrillers

After directing, producing and writing three Knives Out movies starring Daniel Craig, Rian Johnson is ready for his next project, which will be a sci-fi thriller. Knives Out proved to be hugely successful at the box office and with critics, earning a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score.

Johnson followed that up with two movie sequels, Glass Onion and Wake Up Dead Man. He is also well-known for directing The Last Jedi, the second film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and the sci-fi movie Looper.

After diving headfirst into the mystery genre via Knives Out, Johnson has an idea in his head for his next movie, which will see the filmmaker returning to sci-fi. During an interview with Empire, he revealed that it’s inspired by “’70s paranoid thrillers” with an element of “light sci-fi.” Check out his comments below:

The most exciting thing right now is this idea I have in my head for the next thing I’m gonna make, and I think ultimately, that’s all you can do, is just kind of follow your nose. If I had to define it genre-wise, I’d say it harkens back to the ’70s paranoid thrillers. It’s got a light sci-fi element to it.

Johnson plans to follow his instinct when fleshing out the idea into a fully-formed story and eventually into a movie. He has experience with Star Wars, one of the most iconic intellectual properties to ever exist. While Star Wars isn’t a clear-cut sci-fi franchise, with fans preferring to label it as science fantasy or a space opera, the stories have sci-fi elements. The director admitted that he would love to return to Star Wars if it made sense for both him and Disney:

That cog will be turning the rest of my life. I love Star Wars. And if some day it makes sense to come back to it, for both of us, it would be the most wonderful thing in the world.

Looper, on the other hand, is a sci-fi thriller, so Johnson will definitely be able to lean on his experience with that project for his current idea, which is a thriller with sci-fi elements.

Released in 2012, Looper is centered around assassins who kill their targets by sending them back in time. The film starred Bruce Willis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Emily Blunt. Like with Knives Out, Looper was a hit at the box office and has a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.

It’s unclear at this point if Johnson’s next film will receive a theatrical release or be a streaming exclusive. Glass Onion had a limited release in theaters before debuting on Netflix. Meanwhile, Wake Up Dead Man will have a similar rollout, with a limited theatrical release set for November 26, and a Netflix release date of December 12.

He already has a great working relationship with Netflix, so it’s possible Johnson could sign a deal with the streamer for his new idea. However, he still loves the theatrical experience at a movie theater. Sinners, among others, proved that original stories can still work on the big screen, according to Johnson.

Johnson’s experience across multiple genres, including mystery with Knives Out and sci-fi with Looper, proves that his next movie is sure to be another hit, no matter if it’s released in theaters or goes straight to a streaming service.