Nobody 2 (2025)
Directed by: Timo Tjahjanto
Premise: A sequel to the 2021 film. Hutch (Bob Odenkirk) has returned to his career as a hitman. Needing a break, Hutch takes his family on vacation and stumbles upon a violent crime syndicate.
What Works: In the past few years, Hollywood has produced a surplus of assassin movies such as the John Wick series, Atomic Blonde, Bullet Train, The Amateur, and The Accountant films. The Nobody series is distinguished by its emphasis on family. Hutch is primarily a husband and a father and his relationship with his family is central to both stories. The relationship between violence and masculinity is central to Hutch’s story and this takes an interesting turn in the sequel as Hutch recognizes that his work life is impacting his son. The Nobody films also establish Hutch as a killer with a conscience. In each film he uses his skill set to save a young person from being victimized and in the process causes himself considerable grief. These qualities make Hutch heroic, much more so than other assassin characters. The Nobody films are an effective match of a character with an actor. The films capitalize on Bob Odenkirk’s image following his role in the television series Better Call Saul; he plays a guy who does the wrong things for the right reason. For the sequel, Hutch faces off against an especially vicious gangster played by Sharon Stone. She’s unpredictable and frightening and makes an effective foil to Odenkirk. Nobody 2 steps up the carnage and the style. The set pieces are crunchy and brutal but they also have a quality of slapstick comedy especially the climactic shootout in an amusement park.
What Doesn’t: Nobody 2 repeats a lot of the first movie. The filmmakers are going for irony. Hutch began the first film living a neutered suburban life and alienated from his family. He recovered his dignity and manhood by embracing his skills as a killer. In Nobody 2, Hutch has returned to professional killing but he’s so busy with work that Hutch is back where he started, estranged from his wife and kids. The sequel repeats Hutch reconnecting with his family and proving himself as a husband and a father. That appeal is diluted this time around. The sequel lacks meaningful moments between Hutch and his family and Hutch stows away his wife and kids while he fights the villains, separating his family problems from the conflict. The set pieces of Nobody 2 are bigger and better produced but they lack a sense of meaning. By the end, lots of bad guys are dead but it doesn’t feel as though anything deeper has been won or affirmed.
Bottom Line: Nobody 2 satisfies as an action film. It’s mostly more of the same and the story doesn’t do much with its characters but Nobody 2 provides the humor, action, and humanity that worked the first time while elevating the spectacle.
Episode: #1062 (August 24, 2025)