A TV spin-off of the magician heist franchise “Now You See Me” has been discussed, according to producer Bobby Cohen.
Ahead of the release of the third film “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t” in cinemas next Friday, Cohen confirmed to The Direct that talks of a potential TV series take have been ongoing for some time.
He adds the main goal with a series, if it were to go ahead, would be to do something very different to the movies:
“We have noodled with a television show. We had an idea once to kind of mix it up, because what you wouldn’t want to do is just take the movie and spread it out over eight hours and call it a television show. You’d want to come up with something that was completely different.”
After speaking with many professional magicians, they came up with an idea they are considering – to follow a group of four assistants whose mentor, a famous magician, is mysteriously murdered and leaves them as the prime suspects. They must use magic to prove their innocence and find the real killer.
Cohen stopped short of confirming whether the series is moving forward in any official capacity, adding: “It’s something we’d love to try… I think that would be fun to extend into TV, for sure.”
Lionsgate’s focus is currently on reviving the franchise theatrically with the new film which introduces a new generation of illusionists alongside its original Four Horsemen.
Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, and Morgan Freeman all return from previous outings while Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, and Ariana Greenblatt also join in the fun. Both previous films made over $300 million each.
“Now You See Me: Now You Don’t” opens in cinemas on November 14th.
