“Crimson Tide” Sequel in the Works After Gene Hackman's Death, Producer Hopes Denzel Washington Will Return
- - - "Crimson Tide" Sequel in the Works After Gene Hackman's Death, Producer Hopes Denzel Washington Will Return
Madison E. GoldbergJuly 3, 2025 at 3:11 AM
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Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman in Crimson Tide
A sequel to the 1995 film Crimson Tide is in the works
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer is hopeful Denzel Washington will return
The news of the sequel comes four months after one of its stars, Gene Hackman, died at 95 in February
A sequel to the 1995 film Crimson Tide is in the works, with original producer Jerry Bruckheimer hoping for star Denzel Washington to return.
Thirty years ago, the submarine action thriller film took viewers to new depths with a conflict between two U.S.nuclear missile submarine officers – Commanding Officer Captain Franklin "Frank" Ramsey (Gene Hackman) and Executive Officer Lieutenant Commander Ronald "Ron" Hunter (Washington).
"We have a really good director and writer talking to the navy right now about what's going on under the water," Bruckheimer teased on The Rich Eisman Show on Monday, June 30.
"If we give him a good script, I think he'd do it," Bruckheimer said of Washington, 70, returning to the franchise.
A source confirmed to Variety that the Academy Award winner's participation in the sequel is script-dependent at this time, and the sequel is still in early development. The news of the sequel comes four months after Hackman died at 95 in February.
The bodies of the actor and his wife, classical pianist Betsy Arakawa, 65, were found at their home in Santa Fe Summit on Feb. 26.
A spokesperson for the Santa Fe County Sheriff's office told PEOPLE at the time that deputies were dispatched to a home in Old Sunset Trail in Hyde Park where Hackman, Arakawa and one dog were found dead.
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Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington in Crimson Tide
The actor's cause of death was ultimately revealed to be a combination of severe heart disease, high blood pressure and advanced Alzheimer's disease, and was likely alone in the home with his dead wife for days.
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His wife Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is caused by hantavirus. Hantavirus is transmitted to humans via rodent urine, saliva and droppings. Her last outward communication, via email, appeared to occur on Feb. 11, said Santa Fe Sheriff Adan Mendoza at the time.
Tony Scott, the original director of Crimson Tide, died in 2012 at 68, and Robert Towne, one of its writers, died in 2024 at 89.
PEOPLE has reached out to Disney, which produced the original Crimson Tide, for comment.
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