Chris Hemsworth's Tyler Rake is, improbably,
once again on a perilous rescue mission in Netflix's "Extraction 2."
He's proven he can save innocents in danger, but was he able to save himself this time?
Warning: Spoilers for "Extraction 2" ahead!
After seemingly being killed at the end of the previous movie, it turns out that Tyler survived
his fall into the river and eventually winds up in in a Dubai [DOO-by] hospital. One rehab montage
later and he’s back to his old self and really to roll. His mission this time around is to save his
ex-wife's sister Ketevan and her two children, who have been forcefully imprisoned by Davit, a crime
lord and the patriarch of their family. Tyler and his small team are able to get the family out of
the jail and kill Davit in the process. They soon end up being hunted by Davit's brother Zurab,
who becomes obsessed with killing Tyler. Although Ketevan has no desire to return to her old life,
her son Sandro {SAND-roh} is conflicted about leaving the people he considers his family.
59:07 to 59:14 "You think you saved me? That you're some hero?" "It
doesn't really matter what I think."
This inner identity crisis leads Sandro to give away the group's position. With that info,
Zurab and his men ambush Tyler's team. During all the carnage, a confused Sandro decides to go with
his uncle, but ultimately regrets it after seeing how crazed and violent Zurab has become. Tyler is
reunited with his ex-wife Mia, and he's forced to recall the painful memories tied to him not
being there when his son died from lymphoma. Now, after that brief and emotional reunion,
Tyler heads out to kill Zurab once and for all and take Sandro out of this dangerous life for good.
When Tyler arrives to save Sandro and kill Zurab, he has no issues taking down all of
Zurab's remaining soldiers. But then he runs into a problem when he confronts Zurab in a
church. Zurab has strapped a bomb vest onto Sandro and has the detonator in his hand.
He's ready to blow everything up if Tyler makes a wrong move. Zurab has Sandro disarm Tyler,
and tasks Sandro with shooting him in the head. Sandro refuses,
and Zurab calls him weak before pointing the gun towards Tyler. Luckily for Tyler,
Nik shows up to stop Zurab from killing him, and a huge brawl eventually breaks out.
During the big fight, Nik is severely injured. Sandro manages to get the bomb vest off of himself
before it can go off. As for Zurab and Tyler, after their fight, they find themselves on the
floor, exhausted. Although Tyler has clearly won the fight, Zurab says that he'll never
stop hunting and trying to kill Tyler, so Tyler viciously shoots him in the head. Tyler is able
to finally end the cat-and-mouse game and complete his mission, but it comes at an unexpected cost.
Tyler can't escape the consequences of the carnage and bloodshed he and his team have
left in their path. He gets hauled off to prison, where he's visited by Mia. She says that their
son was actually very proud of Tyler for what he did as a soldier and was inspired by his bravery.
"His last image of you wasn't of you walking out on him. It was you going off to save people."
It's an emotionally fulfilling moment that enables Tyler to push past the grief and guilt
that's afflicted him for so long. Though he's regained some peace, it seems like the remainder
of Tyler's life will likely be in prison until a familiar face comes to bust him out.
Shortly after talking with Mia, Tyler is escorted out of the prison and led to see
the mysterious Man in the Suit, played by Idris Elba, who has a new mission for him.
Tyler initially shows some hesitancy about going back out in the field,
but isn't given much of a choice. At least his request to reunite with his team is fulfilled,
because Nik is shown to be stepping out of an SUV. Tyler is still curious about the "naughty"
person the Man in the Suit actually works for, but he doesn't get that answer, at least not yet.
There are multiple conversations throughout "Extraction 2" about defining true family
and what it means to be a good father. For Sandro,
he's constantly conflicted about leaving behind his uncle and the criminal organization
his father built because he's come to see them as his family. For his part,
Tyler still harbors self-resentment over leaving his ill son and not being there until the end.
Although Tyler and Sandro rarely see eye to eye, they both come to the same realization
about family and fatherhood. They come to learn that family means something much deeper
than just physical proximity. Sandro starts to understand that his uncle wants to keep him,
his mom and his brother close to maintain power, not out of love. He also comes to see
how Tyler and his mother are willing to protect him at all costs. And Tyler begins to understand
the real impact he made as a father when Mia tells him about how much he inspired his son.
Tyler is able to regain his physical strength to complete this mission,
but it's still not clear if he's really in good shape to continue in the field. His
guilt from not being around for his son during his final moments still haunts him and makes
him feel broken. His unyielding devotion to rescuing Ketevan and her children seems to be
a sort of penance. Not only is he willing to do anything and everything to keep this family safe
even if it leads to his own death, but he even tells Mia to literally take everything he has,
including a hefty amount of security cash, and give it to Ketevan to support her family.
That said, when Tyler learns that his decision to leave during his son's final moments didn't
cause his son to hate him, it creates a real change within him. This realization is the
last hurdle he needed to overcome to really move forward on his own. It gives him a new strength
that means more than any of the physical rebuilding he did at the start of the film.
"Extraction 2" ends in a far different place than the first movie does. Tyler
was by all indications dead at the end of "Extraction," but now, he's not just alive,
but being recruited with Nik for a whole new mission. Plus, there's the lingering question
of just who the Man in the Suit's employer is, something audiences are sure to want to know.
"My name doesn't matter."
"Then what does?"
"Who I work for."
While there isn't much to go on in terms of who Tyler and Nik could be fighting against and with,
or where they could be going, it's almost assured that a third film is on the way.
Now that Tyler has been able to move past his guilt and grief surrounding his son's death,
this is sort of the start of a new chapter for him,
and the opportunity for a new arc to begin. Although there hasn't been any confirmation
yet from Netflix or anyone involved that a third "Extraction" film is in development,
it's hard to believe that the streamer would pass on the opportunity to continue this franchise.
There's also reason to wonder if "Extraction" might expand into a
bigger franchise beyond just direct sequels. The first film was a humongous success for
Netflix and probably one of the most well-regarded original films to come
from the streaming giant. "Extraction 2" easily shows potential to be just as big.
It's essentially Netflix's equivalent to a summer blockbuster, so it's very much
a possibility that Netflix could have plans to expand the franchise beyond Tyler's story.
There are a number of interesting routes the franchise could take in expanding the story
and world of "Extraction." There could easily be spin-off films or series that
focus on other agents and mercenaries with whom The Man in the Suit works, or maybe even a film
where Nik goes on her own mission. Maybe we could even get a prequel focusing on Tyler's missions
directly after his son died to see some of the relationships he developed during that
rough time in his life. In short, Netflix could extract a lot of content out of this franchise.
There's clear potential for a third "Extraction" film, if not more,
but what do the cast and crew think about there being another entry in Tyler's story? Director
Sam Hargrave is certainly optimistic. In an interview with Decider, he said,
"There's definitely an appetite for a third movie."
Hargrave added that not only has Netflix expressed excitement about a sequel, the
production company behind the films has discussed it, and Chris Hemsworth, quote, "loves playing the
character." The director even mentioned that he's got some ideas for what a third film could be,
but also clarified that a sequel will likely only happen if "Extraction 2" performs well on Netflix.
It seems like Hargrave would certainly be up for returning if "Extraction 3" was
given the green light, and Hemsworth seems to share in that optimism. In
an interview with Total Film magazine, the actor was very excited to talk about
the "Extraction" films and how he'd love to come back for more. He said,
"I love playing the character. I love this world. I love having something
else outside of Marvel that's amassed a bit of a following."
He even said that it would be a "shame" if they didn't get the chance to do more,
so it seems like the big players of the "Extraction" franchise want to come back.
Although "Extraction 2" released just a few years after its predecessor, fans might have
to wait a little longer for the franchise to return, but maybe not for the reasons people
expect. Hemsworth recently announced that he was taking a break from acting to spend more time with
his family after he discovered on the National Geographic series "Limitless" that he carries a
gene connected to an increased risk of Alzheimer's Disease. However, the actor has clarified that his
decision to take a break isn't just about this health discovery. He told Entertainment Tonight,
"I wanted to take time off because I've been working for 10 years,
and I've got three kids that I want to spend more time with."
Given that Hemsworth has been tirelessly portraying Thor in the MCU and has had a
solid string of other roles over the last decade, it's not a huge surprise that he'd want to take a
breather. However, his acting break does leave the future of the "Extraction" franchise in
question. Maybe Hemsworth's absence will allow the franchise to expand and explore spin-off
stories in that world until Hemsworth returns to acting and "Extraction 3" can take off.