It seems hard to believe, but nearly 20 years ago, Disney introduced the world to Benjamin Gates, and they followed along in his journey to steal the Declaration of Independence (for a good reason of course). National Treasure starred Nicolas Cage as Benjamin Franklin Gates, Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase, Justin Bartha as Riley Poole, Harvey Keitel as Peter Sandusky, and Jon Voight as Patrick Gates. The movie was such a hit that, 3 years later, a sequel film — National Treasure: Book of Secrets — came out. Unfortunately, that film was not as successful as the first.
Book Of Secrets ended with a lead-in to a potential third film, but sadly, that film never came to pass. However, it looks like that may be about to change. According to National Treasure producer Jerry Bruckheimer, a third script is nearly complete and will be sent to Cage! Bruckheimer spoke to Comicbook.com and told them that they have a really great script and that he hopes Cage likes it.
“Let’s hope we’re working on the script right now. Hopefully [Cage] likes it, but it’s really good. So I think we’ll get it to him shortly,” Bruckheimer told us.
It was previously reported that Nic Cage had been on the outs with Disney for a while. Cage starred in several films that were unsuccessful, and said that Disney had stopped calling him. He was asked about a third National Treasure film, but he did not sound very hopeful.
This is not the only National Treasure project Disney has in the works. In March 2021, Disney greenlit a new National Treasure series for its streaming service, Disney+. The new series — called National Treasure: Edge of History — will see both Justin Bartha and Harvey Keitel will return to reprise their roles as Riley Poole and Peter Sandusky. The series will also star Lisette Olivera as Jess Valenzuela and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Billie.
Although nothing is solidified yet, the creators of National Treasure: Edge of History are hopeful that Benjamin Gates makes an appearance in the series. Co-creator Marianne Wibberley said that they will do whatever it takes, including begging, to get Cage to appear on the show.
National Treasure: Edge of History does not yet have a premiere date, but is expected to be on Disney+ sometime in 2023.