Van Helsing 2 - Hugh Jackman, Richard Roxburgh, Kate Beckinsale | The Hunt Never Ended

[00:00:00]What if Van Helsing was never hunting monsters to protect humanity?

[00:00:04]What [music] if every creature he destroyed was actually guarding humanity from him?

[00:00:11]More than two decades after Hugh Jackman walked through the frozen gates of Transylvania carrying silver weapons, [music] ancient secrets, and absolutely no memory of his real identity, the internet is once again filling with trailers claiming that Van Helsing is returning. Some promise Van Helsing 2.

[00:00:28]Hugh Jackman appears [music] in the thumbnails. Kate Beckinsale is shown rising from the dead. Dracula is somehow alive again. But here is the psychologically disturbing [music] truth. None of those sequels has officially been announced. There is currently no confirmed Van Helsing 2, no official release date, and no verified cast list. Most of the trailers [music] spreading online are concept videos created from footage belonging to other movies. However, Universal really has explored another Van Helsing project with horror filmmaker James Wan attached [music] as a producer, and Julius Avery previously reported as its director.

[00:01:06]That project was described as a new [music] horror thriller inspired by Universal's classic monsters, not a confirmed [music] continuation of Hugh Jackman's 2004 film.

[00:01:16]So, why are fans suddenly talking about a third movie? [music] Because Van Helsing may be one of Hollywood's strangest unfinished stories.

[00:01:25]The franchise [music] that disappeared.

[00:01:28]When Van Helsing arrived in 2004, Universal did not treat it like a small experiment. The studio reportedly [music] spent around 160 to 170 million dollars on the production, creating enormous castles, frozen villages, secret laboratories, elaborate weapons, and an entire mythology connecting Dracula, Frankenstein's creature, and the Wolfman. The movie earned approximately 300 million dollars worldwide. That sounds successful, but with [music] its giant production cost and expensive global marketing campaign, the result was not strong enough to launch the franchise Universal had imagined. Plans for more stories were abandoned. This is important because Van Helsing was clearly designed to continue. Gabriel still did not understand his past. The Holy Order was hiding information from him. Dracula recognized him immediately and claimed that Van Helsing had killed him once before. Yet, the film ended without explaining the biggest [music] mystery of all. Who was Gabriel Van Helsing before the church found him? That unanswered question could become the foundation of a terrifying new trilogy.

[00:02:37]Is it connected to the original movie?

[00:02:39]If Universal ever made a movie called Van Helsing 2 [music] with Hugh Jackman, it would almost certainly need to acknowledge the original film. However, because no second [music] chapter currently exists, [snorts] the title Van Helsing 2 would be misleading unless the studio secretly treated another story as chapter 2 or created a time jump covering an unseen mission. A more realistic possibility would be a legacy sequel released simply as Van Helsing, following the approach used by other returning franchises. It could continue the 2004 mythology while also functioning as a fresh beginning for younger viewers. Gabriel would no longer be the fearless hunter we remember. He would be older, physically exhausted, and [music] psychologically haunted by hundreds of creatures he had destroyed without ever discovering whether the organization commanding him was truly righteous.

[00:03:30]And this is where the story could become far more interesting than another simple battle against Dracula.

[00:03:36]Theory one, Van Helsing was once an angel.

[00:03:40]The original film repeatedly suggests that Gabriel is not an ordinary human.

[00:03:45]Dracula calls him Gabriel, reacts to the symbol on his ring, and remembers fighting him centuries earlier. Gabriel possesses unusual [music] strength, survives impossible battles, and has apparently lived without knowing his real age. One popular interpretation is that he could be the Archangel Gabriel trapped in human form after committing an unknown act in the past. But imagine the sequel revealing something darker.

[00:04:10]Gabriel was not sent to [music] Earth to destroy Dracula. He was sent to judge humanity. Dracula discovered the mission and attempted to stop him. The Holy Order then erased Gabriel's memories, transformed him into a weapon, and spent generations sending him after every supernatural creature [music] capable of revealing the truth. Suddenly, the first movie changes completely. [music] Van Helsing was never hunting monsters because they were evil. He was hunting witnesses. And once his memories begin returning, the church realizes [music] that its greatest weapon may become its greatest enemy. If a real continuation happened, Hugh Jackman would obviously be the emotional center. David Wenham's Carl could now be a senior leader inside the Holy Order, creating a heartbreaking conflict between two former friends.

[00:04:57]Carl may believe that hiding Gabriel's identity protected the world. Gabriel may see it as the ultimate betrayal. A new female hunter could then enter the story, not as a replacement for Anna, but as someone raised by the order to eliminate Gabriel if his memories ever return. And here is the cruel twist. She might be Gabriel's daughter. Not necessarily a biological child, but a descendant created from his blood by the order. Meaning the church has spent centuries attempting to manufacture another immortal hunter. The story Van Helsing 2 should follow. The movie could begin with a remote monastery being discovered, completely abandoned. There are no bodies, no evidence of violence.

[00:05:39]Every clock has stopped at exactly 3:13 in the morning. On the walls, one sentence has been carved repeatedly.

[00:05:47]Gabriel has remembered. Van Helsing is living alone, refusing missions, and attempting to escape the nightmares of Anna's death. Carl arrives with news that members of the Holy Order are disappearing across Europe. Gabriel initially believes a monster is hunting them, >> [music] >> but during the investigation, he discovers that the victims were all involved in erasing his memories. The killer is not targeting innocent priests. Someone is eliminating the people who imprisoned [music] Gabriel inside a false identity. Because Van Helsing 2 has not officially entered production, it has no confirmed release date. Even if Universal announced [music] a continuation soon, a large-scale Gothic action film would require extensive writing, [music] casting, set construction, filming, and post-production. Realistically, it would probably not arrive before 2028 or later. The most powerful sequel would not end with Gabriel defeating another monster. It would end with him discovering that the world [music] still needs monsters. Without them, humanity would have nothing to fear except itself. After exposing the Holy Order, Gabriel is offered a choice. He can reclaim his full power and remove every supernatural creature from existence, but doing so would also erase Anna's soul forever. Or, he can remain human, protect the remaining creatures, and accept that he may never see her again.

[00:07:09]Gabriel chooses humanity. He destroys the machine capable of restoring his power, >> [music] >> walks away from the Order, and disappears into the mountains. For a moment, it appears that his story is finally over. Then, [music] inside the ruined chamber, Carl finds a sealed coffin marked with the same symbol Gabriel [music] wears on his ring. The coffin opens. Inside is another Van Helsing. Not a clone, not a descendant, [music] the original. Meaning the man Hugh Jackman played in 2004 may have been the monster [music] all along. Van Helsing 2 is not officially happening yet. The actors discussed remain unconfirmed and the storyline you have just heard is theory, not leaked information. But if Universal [music] truly wants to resurrect this world, it should not simply bring back Dracula. It should bring back the question the first movie was too afraid to answer. Who is Gabriel Van [music] Helsing and what happens when he finally remembers?