‘Heat 2’ novel announced by Michael Mann
It’s been over 25 years since the release of the modern crime thriller classic, Heat, starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Val Kilmer, yet a sequel to the new film is reported to be in the works, albeit in book form. Written by the director of the original film, Michael Mann, as his debut novel, the new book will serve as both a prequel and a sequel to his 1995 film, with Meg Gardiner helping write the story.
An intense, high-stakes battle of minds and morals, Heat follows the hot pursuit of a career criminal Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) by LAPD cop Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino) as we follow how each character’s lives are meticulously constructed. Slowly cranking tension until its iconic faceoff in the final scene, the film is recognised as one of the greatest crime thrillers of all time, preceding other Michael Mann projects such as The Insider, Collateral and Miami Vice.
Speaking to Deadline, Mann stated: “It’s been my intention for a long time to do the further stories of Heat,” with the ending of the film certainly asking questions as to the futures of its iconic characters. Continuing, he notes, “There was always a rich history or back-story about the events in these people’s lives before 1995 in Heat and projection of where their lives would take them after”.
Picking up the day after the events of the film, the new novel will jump timelines and look at the lives of McCauley and Hanna six years before the film as well as long into their distant future. As the writer and director revealed, “The novel shows a McCauley very much attached and the dramatic events that resulted in his dictum that ‘if you’re making moves on the street, have no attachments, allow nothing to be in your life that you cannot walk out on in thirty seconds flat if you spot the heat around the corner’”.
Heat 2 is due to be released on August 9th, 2022, with pre-orders now being taken.
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