Rian Johnson’s hit Knives Out franchise keeps getting better and better. After the recent success of the third film, Wake Up Dead Man (2025), fans have countless proposals for the next installment.
Knives Out (2019) made a big splash in pop culture when it first released. And its two sequels, Glass Onion (2022) and Wake Up Dead Man (2025) haven’t failed to live up to the original film’s intriguing world of quirky characters and poignant social critique.
These movies tend to strike the perfect balance between being comfortingly familiar and newly suspenseful. The (not-so) secret ingredient is Daniel Craig’s beloved detective character, Benoit Blanc. Each Knives Out film changes the setting and supporting cast of its murder mystery, but keeps Blanc as a central through-line.
Benoit Blanc, character of all time
Craig’s world-famous detective is a modern successor to the likes of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Colombo, and Father Brown. He often works with the police, but not for them, and stays true to his own sense of justice. Knives Out, Glass Onion, and Wake Up Dead Man all see Benoit Blanc helping disenfranchised characters while the ultra-rich, ultra-conservative, and ultra-manipulative antagonists get their just desserts.
When you combine this with his sense of style, his exaggerated southern drawl, and his queer identity, it’s clear to see why Benoit Blanc is so easy to love and to root for.
(Fans have even suggested that the film series be called “Benoit Blanc Mysteries” instead of “Knives Out Mysteries.” After all, Blanc is the only consistent element of all three stories.)
Will we get another film? Well…it’s complicated
It’s no surprise that fans want more of these stories from Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig. Since each “Knives Out Mystery” follows an original plot but keeps Benoit Blanc as its core audience draw, this seems like a formula that could work infinitely.
At the moment, Rian Johnson is working on a thriller/sci-fi project that takes priority over the next Knives Out. But the director is open to adding another installment to the Benoit Blanc Cinematic Universe. However, it might be a while before we get another murder mystery starring Daniel Craig. Johnson has stated that, while he has a few ideas for a fourth movie, he doesn’t have a theme or central location planned yet.
But this certainly hasn’t stopped fans from coming up with their own Benoit Blanc mysteries. Let’s take a look at some popular ideas and how likely they are to be realized in a future film.
The infamous muppet murder mystery
The suggestion of a muppet sequel to Knives Out has proliferated the internet for years. In fact, Netflix published an article exploring the popular idea before the release of the Glass Onion.
While fan concepts vary, the overall appeal of a muppet Knives Out would likely lie in casting Craig as the main human actor amongst a largely muppet cast. He would be following in the footsteps of Michael Caine in A Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) and Tim Curry in Muppet Treasure Island (1996).
And Benoit Blanc does seem like the perfect addition to a muppet movie. He’s serious enough to play the straight man to comedic shenanigans, but quirky enough to feel at home in a wacky world.
So will we ever get a muppet Knives Out? Well…yes and no.
On one hand, Rian Johnson has repeatedly stated over the years that — while he’s a fan of muppet movies himself — he just doesn’t think they match the tone of a Benoit Blanc mystery.
He has a point there. While the muppets haven’t shied away from sex and violence in the past, Johnson’s movies usually have a darker political slant that would clash with the muppets’ goofy energy. That’s not to say it couldn’t be done, but it would definitely require some creative compromises.
However, fans recently got a delightful taste of this possibility in the form of the Sesame Street short “Forks Out.”
This five-minute mystery introduces “Beignet Blanc,” a muppet detective who helps Cookie Monster discover who ate his pie. It’s a cute, witty watch.
While some fans would still love to see Daniel Craig solve a gruesome murder with Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy, this seems like the closest thing we’re going to get for now.
Turning the tables: Blanc as a suspect
The Knives Out Mysteries all feature Benoit Blanc as a helpful, friendly, and comedic deuteragonist. But what if Blanc himself was accused of murder?
The idea seems almost unthinkable. But a few fans think a development like this could provide a nice change to the story formula. And what world-famous-detective hasn’t had the tables turned on them like this?
This fan concept goes hand-in-hand with another popular suggestion — having Blanc encounter a Moriarty-esque rival. With the character steadily gaining internet fame in the Knives Out universe, it wouldn’t be unrealistic for him to make some dangerous enemies.
Plus, if Blanc was framed for a crime, he’d need some friends to help him prove his innocence. What better way to bring back beloved characters like Marta from Knives Out, Helen from Glass Onion, and Jud from Wake Up Dead Man?
So, could a plot like this actually grace our screens? Well, Rian Johnson has been entirely focused on telling stand-alone stories so far. It’s unlikely that he’d try to tie all his films together. But I can see a nostalgic friends-of-Benoit-Blanc reunion happening eventually, perhaps in a shorter special rather than a full-length film.
Until then, I’m going to need someone to write a fanfic for me, because I absolutely love this concept.
A very “Knives Out” rom-com
In 2022’s Glass Onion, rom-com legend Hugh Grant briefly cameoed as Benoit Blanc’s husband, Philip.
Since then, fans have been craving more appearances from Grant, who was nowhere to be seen in Wake Up Dead Man. A (now-deleted) 2022 tweet by screenwriter Joshua Conkel proposed a humorous sequel in which Blanc has to solve a mystery while hiding it from his husband, who is tired of Blanc’s constant detective work.
This idea is popular with the Knives Out fandom, and multiple variations of it have been discussed with excitement. Some fans have also expressed interest in a flashback or prequel exploring how Benoit and Philip originally met.
A romantic comedy starring Daniel Craig and Hugh Grant would certainly be a hit. And there’s a small chance it might happen.
Craig and Johnson have both stated that they prefer Blanc to be a mysterious character whose full backstory is never elaborated on. Despite this, when discussing the subject with USA Today, Johnson stated, “Never say never.” So he could be open to revealing a little more about the detective’s personal life in the future.
Whether or not we’ll get our rom-com also depends on if Hugh Grant wants to return to the franchise. Which we have no word on, as of now.
A mid-winter murder
Even though Rian Johnson hasn’t picked a setting for Knives Out 4, his fans certainly have.
After the reveal of Wake Up Dead Man‘s springtime setting, it’s become clear that each Knives Out Mystery takes place during a different season. (Knives Out is an autumnal film, and Glass Onion is clearly set in the summer.) So it stands to reason that the next movie might take place in a wintery environment. Perhaps a ski resort, an arctic cruise, or a small mountainside town.
Fans have also proposed the idea of a Christmas-centered mystery. Since all three previous films have released during the holiday season, a fourth installment could definitely play off this tradition.
The idea of a winter film — which concludes a tetralogy of seasonal mysteries —seems pretty likely to come to fruition. After all, Rian Johnson couldn’t have chosen season-specific settings for the first three by accident. I think fans hoping for this one have a good chance of being satisfied by an eventual Knives Out 4.
In conclusion
No matter what, the Knives Out formula is a winning one. Rian Johnson always manages to surprise audiences with his next story, and Daniel Craig always delights in the starring role.
But since we might have to wait a while before the next installment in this series, we’ll have to make do with fan concepts in the meantime. So, even if some of these ideas never make it into an actual film, they’re certainly fun to read and think about.
