Wikipedia

Horrible Bosses 2

Horrible Bosses 2is a 2014 Americancrime comedy filmdirected bySean Andersand written by Anders andJohn Morris.A sequel to 2011'sHorrible Bosses,the film featuresJason Bateman,Charlie Day,Jason Sudeikis,Jennifer Aniston,Jamie Foxx,Kevin Spacey,andLindsay Sloanereprising their roles from the previous film, withChris PineandChristoph Waltzjoining the cast. The plot follows Nick, Kurt, and Dale as they kidnap the son of a billionaire investor in order to blackmail him, out of revenge after he screws them over on a business deal.

Horrible Bosses 2
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySean Anders
Screenplay by
Story by
Based onCharacters
by Michael Markowitz
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyJulio Macat
Edited byEric Kissack
Music byChristopher Lennertz
Production
companies
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release dates
  • November 12, 2014(2014-11-12)(London)
  • November 26, 2014(2014-11-26)(United States)
Running time
108 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$42 million[2][3]
Box office$107.7 million[2]

The film was released byWarner Bros. Pictureson November 26, 2014 and received mixed reviews. While it was ultimately a commercial success, it grossed significantly less than the previous title, earning just over half the original's worldwide gross at $107 million.

Plot

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Three years after thefirst film,Nick, Dale, and Kurt invent a car wash-inspired shower head, the "Shower Buddy". They are approached by Bert Hanson and his son Rex, and Bert agrees to invest if they can make 100,000 units.

With a business loan, the trio outfit a warehouse, producing the quota. However, Bert backs out, as he never signed an agreement. He then tells them that when they are unable to repay their loan of $500,000 from the bank and theyforeclose,he plans to buy their inventory at a knockdown price and sell them (renamed as the "Shower Pal" ) himself.

Seeking financial advice, the three visit Nick's imprisoned former Boss, Dave Harken, who says they have no feasible legal way to recover their losses. They then resolve to kidnap Rex forransom.Seeking Dean "Motherfucker" Jones' help, he suggests keeping the victim unconscious the entire kidnapping. Their ransom note asks for $500,000. They go to the office of Dale's former Boss, Dr. Julia Harris, to stealnitrous oxide.While there, Kurt and Dale are almost caught by members of Julia'ssex addictionsupport group;once they leave, Nick distracts Julia, allowing Dale and Kurt to escape.

At Rex's, as all three hide in the closet, Dale accidentally knocks them out with the gas. Waking up in the morning, Rex is gone. Returning to the warehouse, they find him tied up in their trunk. Getting out, he reveals he found them in his closet, but staged his own kidnapping. Rex sent the ransom note to Bert, increasing the ransom to $5 million. The three doubt Rex's plan, but he threatens to go to the police if they back out. They call Bert to inform him of Rex's kidnapping, threatening to kill him if the police are summoned. However, the police, led by Detective Hatcher, subsequently arrive at the warehouse to question the suspects.

When the police leave, Rex breaks down when he finds out Bert cares more about his money than him. Now sympathetic, the trio agree to do the fake kidnapping together. They form a plan to outsmart the police and get the ransom money using untraceable phones, a basement garage to block out any tracking signal, and Kurt disguised as Bert.

While the plan is in motion, the trio realize Kurt mistakenly left Bert his own phone instead of the untraceable one to give him instructions. Nevertheless, they use Kurt's phone. Before leaving, Julia arrives, demanding Dale sleep with her or she will report them for breaking into her office. Dale's wife Stacy, with their three daughters, unexpectedly arrives. Believing he is cheating with Julia, she storms off. Dale then angrily locks Julia in the bathroom, so they can leave.

In the basement garage, they demand Bert give them the money and the cell phone. However, he iskilled by Rex,who reveals that, when Bert did not care about him, he decided to kill him, framing them to inherit everything. As they are pursued by the police, Jones arrives. Anticipating they would be killed, he was going to take the ransom money himself.

Jones drives them to the warehouse so they can prove their innocence. Upon arrival, he escapes with the money and the police find Rex tied up. Before they arrest the trio, Kurt's phone rings in Rex's pocket; the police recognize theringtoneas that left to Bert by the kidnappers. When Rex claims the phone is his, Hatcher asks why he did not call the police if he had a phone, so he takes him hostage. When Dale attempts to attack Rex, he shoots him. Hatcher subdues and arrests Rex, thanks to the distraction.

Dale wakes up in the hospital. As he had helped save Hatcher's life, the charges were dropped. Julia helped with Stacy, although hints at havingrapedhim during his coma, and promises to have sex with Stacy as well. In the end, their business does go into foreclosure, but Harken buys it, allowing the trio to stay employed. Jones, meanwhile, uses the ransom money to invest inPinkberry.

Cast

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Production

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Development

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Followingthe first film's release in July 2011, directorSeth Gordonconfirmed that talks were underway for a sequel due to the financial success of the film in the United States, saying: "Yeah, we've definitely discussed it. It's done well in the States, the film has, so that's becoming a more concerted effort now, we're trying to figure out what the sequel could be."[4]On January 4, 2012, it was confirmed that a sequel was moving forward and that screenwritersJohn Francis DaleyandJonathan Goldsteinwould be returning to write the script.[5]At this time,New Line Cinemawas reported to be negotiating with Gordon to return as director as well as withJason Bateman,Charlie Day,andJason Sudeikisto return in the lead roles.[6]On February 27, 2012, it was confirmed that Goldstein and Daley were in the process of writing the new script.[6]In March 2013, Goldstein and Daley confirmed that they had submitted multiple draft scripts for the sequel, and that production had moved towards finalizing the budget.[5]Later in the same month Bateman, Day, and Sudeikis were confirmed to be reprising their roles, withJamie Foxxnegotiating to return.[5]The film was once again produced byBrett RatnerandJay Stern.[5]

In August 2013, it was announced that Gordon would not be returning to direct because of scheduling conflicts and that the studio was actively searching for a replacement.[7][8]In September 2013,Sean Anderswas announced as Gordon's replacement, withJohn Morrisjoining the production as a producer.[9]The pair had previously performed a rewrite on Goldstein's and Daley's sequel script.[9]In September 2013,Jennifer Anistonsigned on to reprise her role as Julia Harris.[10]

Filming

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Principal photographytook place inBurbank, California,between September 2013[11]and June 2014.[12]

Release

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The firsttrailerwas released on September 30, 2014.[13]On September 27, 2013, it was announced that the film would be released on November 26, 2014.[14]

Home media

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The film was released onDVDandBlu-rayon February 24, 2015 byWarner Home Video.Like the first film, the Blu-ray release contains an extended version, which runs an additional eight minutes longer than the 108-minute theatrical cut.[15]

Reception

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Box office

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Horrible Bosses 2grossed $54.4 million in North America and $53.2 million in other territories for a total worldwide gross of $107.7 million worldwide, against a budget of $57 million.[2][3]This was just over half its predecessor's total gross of $209 million.[16]

The film was released in 3,321 theaters in the United States and Canada on November 26, 2014. It earned $1 million from Tuesday night previews[17]and $4.3 million (including previews) on its opening day.[18]The next day onThanksgiving Dayit earned $3.1 million, for a two-day total of $7.3 million.[19]On Fridaythe film earned $6.2 million.[20][21]In its opening weekend it earned $15.5 million (a five-day total of $23 million), finishing fifth at the box office.[22]

Outside North America, the film was released to 42 markets and earned $11.7 million from 4,900 screens. The highest debuts came from Russia ($2.3 million), the United Kingdom ($2 million), Mexico ($1.13 million) and Germany ($1 million).[23]

Critical response

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OnRotten Tomatoes,the film has an approval rating of 34% based on 155 reviews and an average rating of 4.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Horrible Bosses 2may trigger a few belly laughs among big fans of the original, but all in all, it's a waste of a strong cast that fails to justify its own existence. "[24]OnMetacritic,the film has a score of 40 out of 100 based on 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[25]Audiences polled byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale, the same grade earned by its predecessor.[26]

Justin Lowe ofThe Hollywood Reportersaid, "The jokes start growing stale well before the film's midpoint."[27]Justin Chang ofVarietycalled the film an "inane and incredibly tasteless sequel."[28]Dan Callahan ofTheWraptold that "the result is puerile, ugly and painfully unfunny."[29]Moira MacDonald ofThe Seattle Timesgave the film one and a half stars out of four, saying "Lots of gags fly by, many of them in questionable taste (some downright offensive) and most of them unfunny."[30]Claudia Puig ofUSA Todaygave the film one out of four stars, saying "This ill-conceived sequel to 2011's entertainingHorrible Bossesis base, moronic, insulting and vulgar. It's also cringingly unfunny. "[31]Tom Russo ofThe Boston Globegave the film two and a half out of four stars and said, "A new misadventure whose negligibly refined formula somehow ends up being more consistently entertaining."[32]Stephen HoldenofThe New York Timessaid that the film is "one of the sloppiest and most unnecessary Hollywood sequels ever made, isn't dirtier or more offensive than its 2011 forerunner. But it is infinitely dumber and not half as funny."[33]

Betsy Sharkey ofLos Angeles Timessaid, "Make no mistake, despite some well-earned laughs,Horrible Bosses 2is not what qualifies as a good movie or even a particularly good R-rated comedy. "[34]Joe WilliamsofSt. Louis Post-Dispatchgave the film two out of four stars and said, "Horrible Bosses 2is further proof that likable actors have to take an occasional sick day. "[35]James Berardinelligave the film one and a half stars out of four and wrote for ReelViews, "Horrible Bosses 2(emphasis on "horrible" ) is an apt title for this repugnant, unnecessary sequel. "[36]

Future

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In 2015,Jason Batemandiscussed what "went wrong with the film" on theWTF with Marc Maronpodcast, noting that the film's release over Thanksgiving weekend likely played a part.[37]

In a 2022 interview withCharlie Day,when asked if a thirdHorrible Bossesfilm would happen he answered: "I'd love to do it, yeah you know, it's not up to me, but if it were up to me we would be filming soon".[38]

In 2024,Horrible Bosses 2gained renewed attention when it ranked in the top 10 of Netflix's movie chart, highlighting its continued popularity.[39]

References

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  1. ^"HORRIBLE BOSSES 2(15) ".British Board of Film Classification.September 18, 2014.Archivedfrom the original on December 24, 2014.RetrievedSeptember 18,2014.
  2. ^abc"Horrible Bosses 2 (2014)".Box Office Mojo.Archivedfrom the original on September 6, 2018.RetrievedMarch 12,2016.
  3. ^ab"2014 Feature Film Study"(PDF).FilmL.A. p. 19.Archived(PDF)from the original on May 20, 2023.RetrievedApril 14,2018.
  4. ^"'Horrible Bosses' Sequel Planned ".Huffingtonpost.co.uk.July 27, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on March 30, 2012.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  5. ^abcdKroll, Justin (February 27, 2012)."'Bosses' writers take New Line 'Vacation'".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on April 19, 2018.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  6. ^ab"'Horrible Bosses 2' in the Works With Original Creative Team (Exclusive) ".The Hollywood Reporter.January 4, 2012.Archivedfrom the original on November 21, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  7. ^"'Horrible Bosses 2': Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis Close Deals ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on July 2, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  8. ^Yamato, Jen."Director Seth Gordon Exits 'Horrible Bosses 2'".Deadline Hollywood.Archived fromthe originalon August 7, 2013.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  9. ^ab"'Horrible Bosses 2' Taps 'We're the Millers' Writers to Direct, Produce (Exclusive) ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on January 5, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  10. ^Schwartz, Paige (September 11, 2013)."Jennifer Aniston Signs On For Horrible Bosses 2".Star Magazine.Archivedfrom the original on September 27, 2013.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  11. ^"The Gang Reunites on the Horrible Bosses 2 Set".ComingSoon.net.September 12, 2013.Archivedfrom the original on November 12, 2014.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  12. ^Machado, Sam (June 9, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2' News: Kevin Spacey Teases How His Character Will Fit Into The Sequel, Finished Filming? ".enstarz.Archivedfrom the original on January 3, 2021.RetrievedJuly 2,2014.
  13. ^"'Horrible Bosses 2′ Trailer: Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz Do Bad Biz In Sequel ".Deadline Hollywood.September 30, 2014. Archived fromthe originalon October 2, 2014.RetrievedOctober 1,2014.
  14. ^"Horrible Bosses 2 Set for Thanksgiving 2014 Release".ComingSoon.net.Archivedfrom the original on September 29, 2013.RetrievedSeptember 28,2013.
  15. ^"Horrible Bosses 2 Blu-ray".Blu-ray.Archivedfrom the original on May 3, 2015.RetrievedJune 7,2015.
  16. ^"Horrible Bosses".Box Office Mojo.July 9, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on October 22, 2018.RetrievedJuly 9,2011.
  17. ^Dave McNary (November 26, 2014)."Box Office: 'Horrible Bosses 2′ Scores $1 Million in Tuesday Night Launch".Variety.RetrievedNovember 28,2014.
  18. ^Nancy Tartaglione (November 27, 2014)."'Mockingjay', 'Penguins' & 'Horrible Bosses 2′ Cook Up T-Giving Box Office ".Deadline Hollywood.RetrievedNovember 28,2014.
  19. ^Nancy Tartaglione (November 28, 2014)."Turkey Day Domestic Box Office Dips As 'Mockingjay' Flies Past $200M Overseas".Deadline Hollywood.RetrievedNovember 29,2014.
  20. ^Maane Khatchatourian (November 19, 2014)."Box Office: 'Mockingjay' Rules Black Friday With $24.1 Million as 'Horrible Bosses 2' Stumbles".Variety.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  21. ^Anthony D'Alessandro (November 29, 2014)."'Mockingjay' Flies Away With Black Friday Cash; 'Penguins', 'Bosses' Left With Bones ".Deadline Hollywood.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  22. ^Anthony D'Alessandro (November 30, 2014)."'Mockingjay,' Holdovers Strong As Turkey Turnstiles Slow: Box Office ".Deadline Hollywood.RetrievedDecember 1,2014.
  23. ^Tartaglione, Nancy (November 30, 2014)."'Mockingjay', 'Interstellar', 'Penguins' Lead Frame; 'Paddington' Charms UK: Int'l B.O. "Deadline Hollywood.RetrievedDecember 1,2014.
  24. ^"Horrible Bosses 2 (2014)".Rotten Tomatoes.Archivedfrom the original on December 19, 2017.RetrievedFebruary 15,2018.
  25. ^"Horrible Bosses 2 Reviews".Metacritic.Archivedfrom the original on December 28, 2017.RetrievedFebruary 15,2018.
  26. ^"CinemaScore".cinemascore.Archivedfrom the original on December 14, 2019.RetrievedNovember 17,2016.
  27. ^Lowe, Justin (November 12, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2': Film Review ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on November 26, 2014.RetrievedNovember 27,2014.
  28. ^Chang, Justin (November 12, 2014)."Film Review: 'Horrible Bosses 2'".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on November 27, 2014.RetrievedNovember 27,2014.
  29. ^Callahan, Dan (November 12, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2' Review: Jason Sudeikis, Jason Bateman and Crew Return for Painfully Unfunny Sequel ".thewrap.Archivedfrom the original on November 27, 2014.RetrievedNovember 27,2014.
  30. ^Macdonald, Moira (November 25, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2': You're fired! ".The Seattle Times.Archivedfrom the original on December 19, 2014.RetrievedNovember 27,2014.
  31. ^Puig, Claudia (November 25, 2014)."Review: 'Bosses' sequel is Horrible and Horribler".usatoday.Archivedfrom the original on November 27, 2014.RetrievedNovember 27,2014.
  32. ^Russo, Tom (November 25, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2' works better ".bostonglobe.Archivedfrom the original on November 29, 2014.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  33. ^Holden, Stephen (November 25, 2014)."Underlings Again Seek the Upper Hand".nytimes.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2014.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  34. ^Sharkey, Betsy (November 25, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2' has horribly funny moments, but too few ".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on November 30, 2014.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  35. ^Williams, Joe (November 25, 2014)."'Horrible Bosses 2' is asleep on the job ".stltoday.Archivedfrom the original on February 3, 2016.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  36. ^Berardinelli, James (November 25, 2014)."Horrible Bosses 2".reelviews.net.Archivedfrom the original on December 5, 2014.RetrievedNovember 30,2014.
  37. ^McArdle, Tommy (January 25, 2022)."Will Horrible Bosses 3 Ever Happen?".Looper.RetrievedApril 1,2024.
  38. ^Will we ever get a #HorribleBosses 3? #CharlieDay addresses the speculation #Shorts.RetrievedApril 1,2024– via youtube.
  39. ^Ulatowski, Rachel (February 26, 2024)."Jason Bateman's Poorly Reviewed Comedy Sequel Rises Into Netflix's US Top 10 Chart".ScreenRant.RetrievedSeptember 30,2024.
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