Fifteen years after stating that Oceans Thirteen will be their last film in the beloved heist franchise, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon are set to return for a sequel in the near future!

The three Hollywood A-listers, now between the ages of 61 to 51, first kicked off the franchise back in 2001 with their remake of the original 1960 Rat Pack classic of the same name. Since then, the series spawned three more films, with an untitled Margot Robbie prequel set in 1960s Europe currently under production.

“Rumours of a film starring George, Brad, and Matt have swirled for years but the timing was off and their jam-packed schedules meant that it was just not possible,” a source said to The Sun.

“Finally the right team for the job has come together in a bid to make it a huge success and the main stars thought it would be good fun to revisit.

“The franchise is hugely popular and the brilliant storyline was an opportunity that was too good to miss.”

Why Was Ocean’s Fourteen Never Made?

While a sequel was certainly a possibility back in the late 2000s, cast member Bernie Mac passed away after Ocean’s Thirteen in 2008 due to pneumonia complications, putting sequel plans on hold. Marvel star Don Cheadle, who plays Basher Tarr in the series, explained the situation at the time:

“We were talking about it, and then Bernie passed, and very quickly we were like, ‘No, we don’t want to do it.’” Twelve years later, fellow cast member Carl Reiner passed away at the age of 98.

Both actors played well-liked roles in the original films as Frank and Saul, respectively — with Frank coming off as a cool, charismatic counterpart to Clooney’s character Danny, while Saul was a skilled actor who played the team’s only dual performance.

Cheadle teased last year that series director Steven Soderbergh was working on a sequel script. Matt Damon also went on record regarding Soderbergh’s return being instrumental in a sequel.

“It would always be up to Steven Soderbergh if there was a story,” Damon said to People. “We have lost a couple of our members, so we would have to figure it out, we are a depleted gang now.”

Both actors appeared in Soderbergh’s 2021 period crime thriller, No Sudden Move.

Lead Image: Warner Bros.