Christian Bale and Leonardo DiCaprio are set to lead Michael Mann's Heat 2, with filming expected to begin in November. Bale will play Vincent Hanna, the obsessive LAPD Robbery Homicide detective originated by Al Pacino, while DiCaprio takes on Chris Shiherlis, the professional thief played by Val Kilmer in the 1995 original.
So rather than teaming up, the two are actually positioned on opposite ends of the law, which is the exact cat and mouse dynamic that made the first film legendary.
The project is based on Mann's 2022 novel co-written with Meg Gardiner, and it functions as both a prequel and a sequel, weaving between storylines set before and after the events of the original. Stephen Graham is set to play Neil McCauley, the role De Niro made iconic, while Adam Driver is in talks to play a brand new villain named Otis Wardell.
Reporting suggests DiCaprio spent six or seven months deciding between playing McCauley or Shiherlis, ultimately choosing Shiherlis, the heavier and more central role, which signals he is fully committed to a demanding six to seven month shoot across multiple countries. Mann and DiCaprio have also been trying to work together for nearly 30 years, having come close on The Aviator before Martin Scorsese took over.
The obvious draw here is watching Bale and DiCaprio, two defining actors of their generation who have never shared the screen, finally go head to head in the same crime universe that gave us the legendary De Niro Pacino diner scene. Expectations are enormous. Do you think Heat 2 can live up to one of the greatest crime films ever made?