Netflix's fantasy action blockbuster returns in July, five years after huge original

It's been quite a while since The Old Guard first dropped on Netflix in 2020 – a movie that managed to thread a rare needle for the huge streamer. It didn't take itself too seriously, and was unashamedly a schlocky action movie, but also did solidly with critics and audiences, rather than being panned like so many Netflix original blockbusters before and since.

Charlize Theron anchored the movie as an immortal fighting against the forces of evil, having lived for thousands of years through the different ages of human civilisation, and it was a lot of fun. Enough fun to earn a sequel, in fact, which just got its first full trailer along with a release date.

The Old Guard 2 | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube

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We now know that The Old Guard 2 will come out on 2 July, giving you a couple of months to prepare yourself or watch the first movie again to remind yourself of how things ended. There's one huge fact to bear in my for the sequel, which is that Theron's character Andy is no longer immortal like her peers.

That's going to be quite a huge adjustment, not least to her in-your-face fighting style, which might be a little harder to pull off when wounds no longer heal themselves over time. This time around the threat of the day will be provided by a glowering Uma Thurman, who seems to be out for vengeance because of what she sees as persecution of immortals historically.

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That'll mean dredging up at least one immortal who was drowned at sea, to recruit her as a foot soldier, and Andy's team are in her sights too. For better or worse, this is one of those trailers that seems to give a pretty clear synopsis of the whole movie, right down to a climactic fight between Theron and Thurman at the death.

Netflix will doubtless hope that this movie can live up to its predecessor's success, both in streaming numbers and reception. On Rotten Tomatoes, The Old Guard boasts an 80% score from critics, which isn't to be sniffed at. We've got a little wait to see how the sequel fares, though.