Will there be a Knives Out 4 movie? Future possibilities explored

Series director and writer, Rian Johnson, alongside leading man Daniel Craig, have both explicitly indicated their willingness for Knives Out 4 in the murder-mystery franchise beyond the recently released addition into the film series, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, which was released on November 26, 2025.

Director Johnson views the detective as a character with infinite possibilities for exploration, stating his desire to keep tackling new genres and settings under the whodunit umbrella. He also highlighted that he doesn't want any returning cast beyond Craig in case Knives Out 4 comes to production. In an interview with Variety, the Star Wars: The Last Jedi director stated:

“I love the fact that each one of these is entirely its own case, entirely its own mystery. I love actors, I want to keep working with new actors, too. At this point, I like the idea of having a new group of folks each time.”

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Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig on making Knives Out 4 film

Rian Johnson at Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery - Los Angeles Premiere (Image via Getty)

On the red carpet at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the writer-director confirmed that conversations with the series’ star, Daniel Craig, are already underway regarding future projects. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the Wake Up Dead Man director stated:

“Creatively, I feel energized after making this one. Daniel and I are already starting to formulate … what could the next one be if we do another one?” He further added, “I don’t know why I would stop doing it if we could keep making them.”

Following the immense critical and commercial triumph of the original 2019 film, Knives Out, director Rian Johnson and his longtime producing partner Ram Bergman became the subject of an unprecedented acquisition war among streaming giants.

In one of the largest deals ever brokered for a film franchise, Netflix secured the rights to two direct sequels, which became Glass Onion and Wake Up Dead Man, in a staggering transaction reportedly valued at $450 million.

While Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery fulfills the two-picture contract with Netflix, Rian Johnson has definitively stated that the path ahead for more Benoit Blanc mysteries remains wide open.

This is because the fundamental ownership of the intellectual property (IP) resides with Johnson and his producing partner, Ram Bergman, under their company T-Street Productions, a point Bergman has explicitly confirmed by asserting, "the franchise is still ours."

This grants the creative team freedom in charting the course for any future installments, including Knives Out 4. They are not tied to any single distributor and now negotiate a new deal that could return the franchise to a wide theatrical release, partner again with Netflix, or move to another major studio.

While there is strong creative willingness, Johnson also recently said there is currently no formal development for Knives Out 4. He’s only “tossing around a couple of ideas,” and intends to make another original movie before committing to a Knives Out 4. Speaking to Cinemblend, he stated:

"No, not really, I actually, I mean, and we've just started. I just started like tossing a couple of things out, but it's not like we're in the development process with it or anything. And the truth is, I know I'm going to make another movie that's a original first before I make another one of these. And I actually think it's kind of important to not really figure out what the next one is going to be until I'm ready to write it and make it."

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Stay tuned for more updates.