It’s 28 years later. Is it too late for a The Professional sequel starring Natalie Portman as Mathilda?
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Luc Besson is, without a doubt, one of the most provocative directors of his generation. When he released Léon: The Professional in 1994, audiences were equally impressed and shocked by what they saw on the big screen. Not every critic was a fan of the intense action scenes and emotionally charged scenes that young Natalie Portman had to go through in the making of Leon. The film had a very dark premise, and had an implied sex scene with a prostitute and some nudity, really bringing into question why such a young actress was cast into the film. The film also starred actor Danny Aiello as Tony, Gary Oldman as the corrupt DEA agent Norman Stansfield, Jean Reno as Leon, Lucius Wyatt Cherokee as Tonto and Peter Appel as Malky.
Legendary critic Roger Ebert even considered the film to be exploitative towards Portman, who was just 13 years old at the time, and the film was her big screen debut. Despite the divisive critics, fans of Besson’s work immediately took a liking to Portman’s character, Matilda, and rumours of a sequel quickly began to circulate around Hollywood producers.
This isn’t really a kids movie, but tells the story of a little girl who is taken in by a professional assassin after her family is murdered, including her mother, father, and little brother. Leon is an Italian immigrant who flex Italy after committing a crime there. She unexpectedly becomes his protégée, living in New York. Unsurprisingly, the corrupt Drug Enforcement Administration agent, with other cops, turn out to be the bad guys, surprising when you have the comparison of a hitman who went on to rescue a little girl.
However, as time went on, numerous factors led to the cancellation of Léon’s sequel, leaving Mathilda fans wishing they could have seen a movie where Portman was the one leading the action. After all, the “Long Cut” of Léon: The Professional makes it very clear that Mathilda is more than willing to become Léon’s successor – and that’s just the kind of action we expect from a proper action sequel telling the story of a professional hitman. With the film’s ending suggesting a future in the world of hitmen for Mathilda, everyone was hoping.
The Professional Sequel Plans and Cancellations
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The idea of a Mathilda solo film emerged as soon as Léon proved a box-office hit. Luc Besson immediately wrote an idea for a sequel starring an older Mathilda, who was now working as a “cleaner” like Léon.
Since the script called for casting an older actress, and Besson knew that fans wouldn’t accept anyone but Portman playing the lead role, filming of the tentatively titled Mathilda: The Professional was postponed until the actress was older. As time went on, it became clear that the movie wasn’t going to happen, mostly because Besson had parted ways sourly with the Gaumont Film Company, which held the rights to the movie. The led him to start his own studio, EuropaCorp , which is home to big blockbuster hits like The Transporter, Be Kind Rewind, Lucy, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
Though it seemed like the idea for Mathilda: The Professional would never see the light of day, a surprising thing happened in 2011: a year in which fans could get a glimpse at what Léon’s sequel could have looked like.
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Alternative The Professional Sequels
In 2011, Olivier Megaton directed an action movie called Colombiana. The film’s plot revolved around a woman who, as a girl, lost her entire family to a drug cartel, and now seeks revenge against those who ruined her life.
At first glance, the movie holds no connection to the original Léon – but both Besson and Megaton have confirmed that Colombiana is an adaptation of the original idea for Mathilda’s standalone film. This means two things: 1) we already got a pseudo-continuation to what would become of a grown-up version of Mathilda, and 2) the Léon sequel starring Natalie Portman is more than likely permanently cancelled.
The Perfect Opportunity For Mathilda: The Professional
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Although it seems more than likely that we’ll never get to see Natalie Portman reprising the iconic Mathilda role in a film, there are still some diehard fans who hope we might be getting to the point when a sequel makes perfect sense.
When the original Léon was released, Jean Reno was 45 years old, and Natalie Portman is now 40, which means that she would be great as a cleaner that takes a new apprentice under her wing.
The rising popularity of pure action films we’ve seen in recent years with movies like John Wick and Nobody has proved that audiences are more than willing to go watch a film that doesn’t hold its punches, in the classic Luc Besson style of filmmaking.
If there ever was a perfect moment to release Mathilda: The Professional, it’s now. After all, the idea is gaining traction in Reddit, and empirical evidence tells us that this kind of social media post is capable of sparking some of the coolest movie ideas.
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Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! There is all manner of wants from a great many of us that would ABSOLUTELY love to see Nathalie reprise her roll!! Who do we have… Read more »
I would pay whatever the ticket price would be for whatever length the movie was to see her in such a movie. Natalie Portman definitely has the chops and physique to be a female John Wick + Jack Reacher + The Hitman + Evelyn Salt rolled up into a single… Read more »
A sequel would be difficult. We expect greater than human abilities. There are several films showing Russian moles that were genetically modified planted in the USA and exhibiting confounding abilities, that are somewhat plausible if raised from birth and trained. Matilda would require some mentoring and Ninja like training (real… Read more »
Dude. Did you not see her physique in Thor L&T? She obviously put on quite a bit of lean muscle for that movie. Leon is one of my favorite movies of the 90s, so I would be stoked if her and Besson came back for a sequel!!!
Yessss please!!!!!
Absolutely yes
Yes I’ve been waiting Hurry please
ABSOLUTELY!!!! PLEASE, PLEASE PLEASE MAKE THIS MOVIE!!!
Yes, definitely, I’m a screenwriter, I’ll help with the script if you want. Yes, yes, make the sequel with Portman!
YES
what are you guys waiting for? Make the movie. now is the time.
YESSSSSSSSS
Yes absolutely!
I would absolutely love to see Natalie Portman reprise her character of Mathilda. Loved the original movies, and think Natalie Portman would make a sequel more than worthy of the original.
Hell yes been waiting for a sequel
Definitely YES. I would love to see The Professional 2 come to light. I loved the original and always thought there should be a sequel. Glad to hear it’s being considered.
Love the idea of a sequel.
Most definitely, this would make sense and very profitable. In the sequel, make Léon’ character as having a twin brother living in Italy at the time of Léon’s death. This way, Portman and Reno can be in the sequel. Now, someone write the script!!
I think the writers, in thinking about a Mathilda movie sequel, have it all wrong, and are very short-sighted. In this age of over the top action movies the public is yearning for good stories with character developement and build-up. It would be better if Tony, Leon’s benefactor, became like… Read more »
I just watched it for the hundredth time and would love to see a sequel.
Most definitely make a sequel to The Proffesional movie with Natalie Portman! When my sone and I saw the movie, we talked about a sequel should be made with Natalie when she got older. Now is the time to use her before she gets much older and before I die.… Read more »
We want it
So, so many different directions a sequel to Leon the Professional could go but having Natalie Portman reprise her role as Matilda would be a real treat. I can’t help but think that sometime in the future a good enough script could arise that would spark interest from her being… Read more »
portman reprising mathilda would be huge, a blind man should be able to see that!?
I for one would love to see this move happen. Now that Portman has bulked up for her role as Thor she should be ready for physicality needed for a great action film like this. That being said, being that she is going to be center stage in the new… Read more »
If you want older, give Wynona Rider a shot, or maybe they could Age Up Millie Bobby Brown?
Yep.,… Netflix would do it I bet