Summary
Gun trainer Taran Butler teases Austin Butler’sHeat 2audition training. Michael Mann’sHeat, which was released in 1995, has since become one of the director’s most beloved films. The director partnered with author Meg Gardiner to pen a follow-up novel that serves as both a prequel and a sequel, and Mann has expressed interested in making theHeat 2moviehis next project. Official casting for the film hasn’t yet been revealed, but Butler has been reported to be a top choice for the role of a young Chris Shiherlis, Val Kilmer’s role in the original film.
During a recent appearance onCorridor Crew’s “Stuntmen React” series, Taran, who runs the Taran Tactical weapons training facility in California, praises his recent training session with Butler, which he conducted as part of the actor’s training for the audition.
The video above (relevant section at 8:33) features clips of Butler practicing his shooting and reloading skills, with Taran voicing his support for the actor to get the role. Check out Taran’s comments below:
“I was very lucky that something cool happened recently. They’re making Heat 2… So Austin came out to get ready to audition for that. So coming up here, I mimicked [Val Kilmer’s] reload from Heat. Even though it’s not decided yet, I don’t think in real life, but I don’t see them going with anybody else.”
Austin Butler Would Be A Great Choice For Heat 2
The Actor Has Proven Himself The Perfect Val Kilmer Replacement
Over the last several years, Butler has become one of the most exciting young actors in Hollywood, and his star power is only rising. After a brief but memorable role inOnce Upon A Time…in Hollywood, Butler played Elvis in Baz Luhurmann’s hit 2022 biopic of the same name. Following that, he appeared as part of thecast ofDune: Part Two, playing the villainous Feyd-Rautha, and he most recently starred inThe Bikeriders. All four of these roles have proven thatButler is an actor with impressive range.
Heat 2: What Happened To The Main Characters After The Film
The sequel novel Heat 2 is set before and after the events of 1995’s Heat, and here’s what happened to the movie’s surviving characters.
These past roles combined withButler’s clear dedication to mastering his weapons skills certainly makes the actor a strong choiceto play a young Shiherlis. DuringHeat’s memorable downtown shootout, Kilmer reloads his assault rifle in the heat of battle. The move was accomplished so proficiently and so quickly thatKilmer’sHeatreloadwas subsequently shown to Marines as a training example. The brief clip in the video above suggests that Butler has mastered this reload, and potentially even advanced beyond it.
Mann recently revealed that he plans tostart filmingHeat 2at the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025, suggesting casting announcements may not be too far off.
On top of all that, Butler also does just look like a young Kilmer. It’s been reported that Adam Driver is a contender for the role of a young Neil McCauley, Robert De Niro’s role from the original, andhaving Driver and Butler on-screen together would undoubtedly make for a powerful combination. It remains to be seen who will end up starring inHeat 2, but Butler has evidently put in the time to make himself an obvious choice.
Heat 2
Cast
Heat 2 is the sequel to Michael Man’s 1995 critically-acclaimed crime film, Heat. The movie starred Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino and Val Kilmer. In 2022, Mann, along with co-author Meg Gardiner, released Heat 2: A Novel. The book follows the characters before and after the events of the 1995 film, and the movie for Heat 2 follows the same premise. In July 2022, Mann confirmed a movie adaptation for Heat 2 was in the works, and in April 2023, Adam Driver was confirmed to play a younger version of De Niro’s character Neil McCauley.
