We Can Be Heroes: The Sequel

We Can Be Heroes: The Sequel (also known as We Can Be Heroes 2) is a 2022 American Superhero film  written   and   directed  by Robert Rodriguez. The film is a sequel to the 2020 film We Can Be Heroes,  and  continues the  storyline  from the first film  two   years   later ,  with  the  new  Heroics having to  fight   off   creatures   created   in  an  evil   scientist's  lab.

 Unlike  the  first  film,  which  was  released   exclusively  on Netflix, We Can Be Heroes: The Sequel was  instead   theatrically   released   on  November 25, 2022,  and   received  positive  reviews  from critics, who  deemed  it  superior  to its  predecessor   and  praised the visual effects  and  performances , although the  plot  was  criticized . The film was  also  a box office success, grossing $74 million against a budget of $20 million. A sequel, We Are Heroes, will be released on October 13, 2023,  and  features  characters from the Spy Kids  franchise ,  making  the Sharkboy & Lavagirl and Spy Kids series  part of the same  cinematic  universe .

Plot
 Two   years   after   taking   over  from their parents, the new Heroics continue to fight crime  in their city , (they're  also   technically   called  " City  Pals ",  because ... they live  in  the city .), and  other  parts of the world. However,  after  Rewind, (Isaiah Russell-Bailey), (Crimson Legend & Red-Lightning-Fury's  son ),  suffers  a  concussion , and is  temporarily  restricted , ( in  this case, I think it must mean " stripped "), of his powers , due to  medical   concerns , the Heroics take a break  from  fighting " evil "... (to be fair , all " Good - Guys " need  this  in  their  lives ...  especially ... " reformed "/" redeemed " ones!). Due to this, a lab scientist gone " mad " named DeAndre Barrett, (Mike Epps), takes advantage of their absence , and soon  begins  developing a " chemical   substance " that can  transfer   powers  from  one to another. He tests it out by  drinking it,  breaking   into  the  house  of the  new  leader of the Heroics, Missy Moreno, (YaYa Gosselin), and  steals her father's, Marcus Moreno's, (Pedro Pascal's), ability to make  things  move to his will.

The next day, the Heroics arrive at Headquarters/HQ like usual, ( probably / possibly  for a top - secret / sea - cret  meeting  on  how  to  finally  stop  all  current enemies  once  and  for all ), only to  find  a note  on  the door  left  by Barrett,  with  the  written  words, "I've stole  some  powers ,  will  be  back  soon for  all  the  rest  of you". Frightened, they take a helicopter  and  go  back  to the alien base  where  they first  took  their new roles as the Heroics originally , and Wheels, (Andy Walken), leads the crew into the  pyramid  room , where they find Ojo, (Hala Finley), a drawer of the future ,  who  actually  turned  out to be Supreme  Commander  of the Aliens, ( both  full - time  and  semi-mer ones!),  and  the leader of the takeover for the new Heroics. They explain what  just  happened, and  ask Ojo, (Hala Finley), to draw  what  will   happen   next ,  but  she says that she can't do it  anymore , and that she, ( somehow ), lost the power ... ( possibly  due to DeAndre Barrett stealing  her  power  of the  future / Pre - cognition , through  drawings / pictures !). She agrees to come  along  with them, anyway, but when they get outside , their helicopter is  destroyed . Wild Card, (Nathan Blair), uses his powers to  transform  into a plane, and they fly off to  find  DeAndre Barrett.

They arrive  back  at Headquarters/HQ,  and  soon,  or , eventually ,  decide  to rest before they locate DeAndre Barrett.  However , while they are sleeping, he  sneaks   into  the base, and takes  away their powers. When they  wake  up, Slo-Mo, (Dylan Henry Lau), finds himself going at  normal  speed  and  Facemaker/" Mist ", (Andrew Diaz), can't morph / shape - shift / shape - change his  face / body. All the Heroics then quickly  and  soon  find  out that their  powers  are gone, except for Wheels, (Andy Walken), who was up  working   in  a  separate  room, while the others were sleeping.  Infuriated , Missy, (YaYa Gosselin), leads the crew to a helicopter, and they fly over to DeAndre Barrett's base, due to Wheels, (Andy Walken), knowing the exact location , from his  rides   around  the neighborhood.

 When  they  arrive  at DeAndre Barrett's base, he greets them, and then , shows  off  all the powers he stole from the Heroics. They try to take him on,  but  they all  mercilessly  get thrashed  back  into a pit, where DeAndre Barrett then quickly  and  instantly  seals it  up , evilly  cackling , as he walks away,  temporarily   trapping  them... yet  again. Meanwhile,  back  at the hospital, Rewind, (Isaiah Russell-Bailey), is watching the television, when he sees that the Heroics have been captured ...  yet  again. Thinking  about  his besties /" friends "/ etc. and sister, fellow  member of the Heroics, Fast Forward, (Akira Akbar), he sneaks  out  of the hospital, and  hijacks an  ambulance . He then arrives at DeAndre Barrett's base, where he keeps  rewinding  time ,  so  DeAndre Barrett, (Mike Epps), can't do  anything  to him. Rewind, (Isaiah Russell-Bailey), then runs, and  soon  finds the pit, where he  frees  his  besties /" friends " and his own  sister , too. Noodles, (Lyon Daniels),  and  Missy, (YaYa Gosselin), lead part of the crew into a shelter, which was  nearby , whilst A Capella, (Lotus Blossom), and Guppy, (Vivien Lyra Blair), hide  inside a different  room  with  Rewind, (Isaiah Russell-Bailey), where they  find  the  power - transferring " chemical  substance ". They sneak it back to the rest of the Heroics, and they  all  take a quick sip  from the vial. They  then   re - confront  DeAndre Barrett, (Mike Epps, (Michael Elliot Epps), again, and take back their stolen powers , ( along  with their parents ' powers , of course ... which ...  also  probably / possibly had gotten  stolen ,  too !), and police  arrive  to arrest DeAndre Barrett, for his  crimes . They  also  ask Ojo, (Hala Finley),  if  she would  like  to join the Heroics, to which she politely  refuses , and goes back to her home base, Planet Ogima.

Back at  base , " everyone "/" everybody "/" everycreature "/" everypony " holds a  surprise  party for Rewind, (Isaiah Russell-Bailey), and all the past Heroics,  including  Sharkboy, (JJ/J. J. Dashnaw), and Lavagirl, (Taylor Dooley), (Guppy's parents), come to celebrate, as  well. Ms. Granada, (Priyanka Chopra Jonas),  former   leader  of the Heroics, and Ojo, (Hala Finley), (Ms. Granada's step - daughter ), also come to  visit  and  chat  with the crew. In a  post - credits  scene, Max, (Cayden Boyd), the " person "/" pony "/" creature " who actually / apparently  created Sharkboy, (JJ/J. J. Dashnaw), (Guppy's  dad / father ),  and  Lavagirl, (Taylor Dooley), (Guppy's mom / mother ), comes  in, and  quickly / instantly  asks for the Heroics.

Cast

 * YaYa Gosselin as Missy Moreno, Marcus Moreno's, (Pedro Pascal's), son, and Anita Moreno's, ( Grandma  Moreno to Missy), (Rita Moreno's), granddaughter . Grandma Anita Moreno, (Rita Moreno), doesn't appear  in the seque l... she only  appears  in the  first  one/movie!


 * Hala Finley as Ojo, Ms. Granada's step - daughter.
 * Lyon Daniels as Noodles,  Invisi -Girl’s son.
 * Nathan Blair as Wild Card, Tech-No's son.
 * Andy Walken as Wheels, Miracle Guy's son.
 * Lotus Blossom as A Capella, Ms. Vox's daughter.
 * Dylan Henry Lau as Slo-Mo, Blinding Fast's  son .
 * Vivien Lyra Blair as Guppy, Sharkboy and Lavagirl’s  daughter .
 * Isaiah Russell-Bailey as Rewind, Crimson Legend & Red - Lightning - Fury 's son.
 * Akira Akbar as Fast Forward, Crimson Legend & Red - Lightning - Fury 's daughter.
 * Andrew Diaz as Facemaker, Crushing Low's son.
 * Mike Epps, (Michael Elliot Epps), as DeAndre Barrett, an " ordinary " scientist gone downright " mad "/" evil ",  and   who  is the main antagonist.

Additionally,  all  of the  past  Heroics from the first film/movie reprise their roles , which includes Pedro Pascal as Marcus Moreno, (Missy's  dad / father ), Boyd Holbrook as Miracle Guy, (Wheels's/Wheels' dad / father ), Christian Slater as Tech-No, (Wild Card's dad / father ), Taylor Dooley as Lavagirl, (Guppy's  mom / mother ), Sung Kang as Blinding Fast, (Slo-Mo's dad / father ), Haley Reinhart as Ms. Vox, (A Capella's mom / mother ), J. Quinton Johnson as Crimson Legend, (Rewind  and  Fast-Forward's dad / father ), Brittany Perry-Russell as Red - Lightning - Fury , (Rewind and Fast-Forward's  mom / mother ), Jamie Perez as Invisi-Girl, (Noodles's/Noodles's  mom / mother ),  and  Brently Heilbron as Crushing Low, (Facemaker's dad / father ). Taylor Lautner replaces JJ Dashnaw as Sharkboy, with Lautner originally playing Sharkboy and Dashnaw having a  silent  role in the first film. Priyanka Chopra Jonas also reprises her  role  as Ms. Granada from the first film, and Cayden Boyd makes a  cameo  as his character Max from The Adventures of Sharkboy & Lavagirl.

Production
After the success of We Can Be Heroes, Netflix approached director Robert Rodriguez to make two sequels on the film. However, he stated that he wanted the film to be theatrical and would instead produce a television series for Netflix. Instead, Dimension Films, who have handled distribution of many of Rodriguez's past films, bought the rights for $3 million. The cast from the first film was announced to be reprising their roles, with the exception of Christopher McDonald, who played President of the United States Neil Anami. Additionally, Taylor Lautner was announced to return to his role as Sharkboy, reprising it from the 2005 film The Adventures of Sharkboy & Lavagirl. Principal photography began in March 2021, shooting in Texas and Georgia. Visual effects were once again provided by Weta Digital.

Release
The film was originally set for release on March 18, 2022, but was pushed back to November 25, 2022, due to conflicting re-shoots. A teaser trailer was released on April 13, 2022, with a full trailer being released on September 3, 2022.

Box office
We Can Be Heroes: The Sequel has grossed $47.4 million in the United States and Canada and $27.5 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $74 million, against a budget of $20 million. Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be $21 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues.

In the United States and Canada, the film was projected to gross $15-20 million in its opening weekend. The film grossed $9.3 million on its first day, including $800,000 from Thursday night previews, and debuted with $19 million, finishing third. In its second weekend, the film grossed $11 million, falling down to fifth. The film closed out its domestic theatrical run with $47 million.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 75% based on 137 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The site's consensus reads, "We Can Be Heroes: The Sequel outranks its predecessor with a more serious tone but the same low-budget fun." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on a scale of A+ to F. According to PostTrak, 69% of audience members gave the film a positive score, with 52% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Sequel
A sequel, titled We Are Heroes, was announced in December 2022 and will be released on October 13, 2023. The film features characters from the Spy Kids franchise and its spin-off films Machete and Machete Kills. The film also features Toby Thompson from the film Shorts, effectively connecting all of Rodriguez's kid-oriented films into one universe.