During the 2020 pandemic, Sam Hargrave’s “Extraction,” starring Chris Hemsworth, became one of the most-watched films in Netflix history.
In my review, I mentioned how it played like a “no-plot-all-action manifesto.” Indeed, “Extraction” survived solely on its action scenes, shot on location in India by DP Newton Thomas Sigel. This included a 12-minute one-take chase through the streets of Dhaka — its sequel, released in 2023, had a 14-minute oner.
Here comes news that “Extraction 3” is not only happening, but that it will be shooting this June in Australia (via What’s on Netflix). Hemsworth is, of course, returning. Hargrave will be back as director. The DP is Fraser Taggart (“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning”).
You can expect Hargrave, a former stunt coordinator, to strap himself to the front of a camera and shoot the action scenes — that’s how he rolls. That’s the advantage you get when the director of your film is also a celebrated stuntman.
“Extraction” follows Tyler Rake, a black-market mercenary played by Hemsworth, who specializes in dangerous rescue missions. In the first movie, he’s hired to extract the kidnapped son of an Indian crime lord from a rival gang in Bangladesh. The sequel has Rake breaking a woman and her children out of a heavily guarded Georgian prison controlled by a violent crime syndicate.
Of course, these movies are critic proof: “Extraction” (56 on MC) and “Extraction 2” (57 on MC) barely count on plot to cook up the thrills— both films function mainly as delivery systems for elaborate stunt work, extended one-take action sequences, and relentless gunfights, leaning almost entirely on their choreography and visceral momentum rather than storytelling complexity.
No word yet on a release date for “Extraction 3,” but if it is indeed shooting this year, then a 2027 release on Netflix is an obvious possibility. No theaters for this franchise.