Edge of Tomorrow Sequel Will Conclude the Series and Introduce a Show-Stealing Third Character

Director Doug Liman recently confirmed that the sequel to the surprisingly good Edge of Tomorrow will be the final film in the series. The film didn’t make much an impact when it released during the summer of 2014, despite having two big-name stars in Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, rave reviews and a thrilling, Groundhog Day meets Independence Day plot. Maybe it had to do with the pointless name that conjures up exactly zero mental images? What the hell is at the edge of tomorrow, anyway? A Taco Bell fourth meal?

We’ve discussed before Liman’s bold plans for the sequel, but it was only recently that the director revealed the film would introduce a third character alongside the returning Cruise and Blunt. It’s still not clear when production is expected to begin on the sequel, but that didn’t stop Liman from excitedly detailing his plans for the forthcoming film:

I think what people tend to do with sequels is they just make them bigger. And I’m like, ‘No, a sequel should be smaller.’ You did the first film as sort of the ad campaign for the sequel, so now you don’t need as much action, and in the case of Edge of Tomorrow, people obviously loved the comedy and they loved the situation. So we can do way more focused on Tom’s character and Emily Blunt’s character, and there’s a third character in the sequel that’s gonna for sure steal the movie. We can focus on that. I don’t need an action sequence every two minutes.

This quote actually shows a director well-attuned to what made the first film so interesting and engaging. The action sequences were certainly thrilling, but it was the film’s wit that really resonated with critics (and the 11 people that saw the movie in theaters). Liman successfully created memorable characters and lent poignancy to a film that’s ostensibly about slicing aliens in half with a sword as big as a mid-sized sedan. Initially, the sequel’s ridiculous title—Live Die Repeat and Repeat—sounds like a list of terrifying instructions for some really hardcore shampoo, but either way, it further shows a commitment to the humor that made the first film so enjoyable. Whether the film will include any shower scenes where Tom Cruise wrestles with a suddenly sentient head of hair remains to be seen.

Cryptically, Liman had earlier suggested the film will be both a prequel and a sequel. While that may sound like nonsense, given the series’ reliance on time travel and repetition, this actually makes a great deal of sense. So far, Liman’s saying all the right things, and we couldn’t be more excited for a return to the war-torn battlefields of Edge of Tomorrow.