Liam Neeson isn’t done with the action game just yet. The star who found a second career in his twilight years as a man with particular sets of skills is getting the most out of his time while his body allows him. Neeson recently starred in the Netflix action film, The Ice Road, from the writer of Die Hard with a Vengeance and writer/director of Thomas Jane’s 2004 Marvel adaptation, The Punisher, Jonathan Hensleigh. The Ice Road saw Neeson and Laurence Fishburne trekking across a frozen highway in semi-trucks as the ice perpetually cracks below them. There are now reports that a sequel is on the way and heading to Amazon thanks to a huge deal made at this year’s Cannes market. According to Deadline, the “biggest deal thrashed out so far at this year’s Cannes market is nearing completion with Amazon Prime Video set to pre-buy international rights — excluding Germany — to Liam Neeson action sequel Ice Road 2: Road To The Sky in a pact pegged around $17M.” However, the deal has not officially closed since Germany has reportedly sold in a separate multi-million dollar pact to a different buyer.
The insurmountable odds of the first Ice Road took place in the cold reaches of Northern Canada. Ice Road 2: Road to the Sky will have the Taken star hitting the road in the mountains of Nepal with a comparable life-and-death atmosphere. The plot involves Neeson returning “as ‘big-rig’ ice road driver Mike McCann who, honoring his late brother’s last wish, travels to Nepal to scatter his ashes on Mt. Everest. While on a packed tour bus traversing the deadly 12,000 ft. terrain of the infamous Road to the Sky, McCann and his mountain guide encounter a group of Nepalese mercenaries and must fight not only to save themselves and the busload of innocent travelers, but also the local villagers’ homeland. Production is due to start in the first quarter of 2024 (meaning it should be removed from any bonding issues).”
Jonathan Hensleigh also returns to helm this entry while Code Entertainment, ShivHans Pictures, and Envision Media produces. Al Corley, Bart Rosenblatt, and Eugene Musso will be producing, along with Shivani Rawat of ShivHans, and Lee Nelson and David Tish of Envision Media Arts (EMA). Additionally, Jonathan Dana will executive-produce, with Julie Goldstein and Connor Flanagan of ShivHans, and Lisa Wilson and Myles Nestel of The Solution. David Buelow of EMA will also executive-produce.