Taylor Sheridan talks “Soldado” and Emily Blunt omission

One of the best film’s of last year was Denis Villeneuve’s Sicario, which delighted both critics and audiences with its sharp script and thrills and spills, grossing $85million worldwide. But while it was a huge success, it wasn’t exactly begging for a sequel but we are getting one in the form of Soldado.

Taylor Sheridan (Sons of Anarchy), who wrote Sicario, has been speaking about the sequel and the somewhat controversial news that Emily Blunt’s FBI Kate Mercer would not be returning for the second film. But the writer has responded by simply saying that Mercer’s arc has been complete.

Talking to The Wrap, Sheridan said that while fans would have liked to have seen Blunt’s return, the story needed to move in a new direction, saying: “Her arc was complete… I couldn’t figure out a way to write a character that would do her talent justice,” 

Sheridan then joked about what could have happened, saying: “What do you do next? She moves to some little town and becomes a sheriff and then gets kidnapped and then we have “Taken“?… I had to tell the story that was true to this role, and I didn’t feel like I could create something with that character that would further that world that would do Emily’s character justice. That said, there could be room for Kate somewhere else down the road.”

He concluded by saying: “Look what she went through. It was a difficult role. Here I write this lead character and then I use her as a surrogate for the audience. I make her completely passive against her own will so the audience feels the same impotence that a lot of law enforcement officers feel, I drag her through hell, and betray her in the end. It was an arduous journey for the character, and for Emily. That character had arc,”

Fellow Sicario cast members Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin are returning for the sequel, which is being directed by Stefano Sollima (Suburra) and is set for a 2017 release.