‘Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’ Review: Gerard Butler Steals the Show in a Mixed Bag of a Sequel

Warning: The following review contains spoilers for the Den of Thieves franchise.

Five years after the original Den of Thieves was released and earned $80 million at the box office, its sequel is now playing in theaters everywhere. The wait for Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is officially over, and the world has finally been delivered more Gerard Butler as a character many would argue is one of his best to date, Big Nick. The first Den of Thieves wasn’t a smash hit upon its release, but the film picked up almost a cult-like following over the last five years through its runs on various streaming services. It’s become one of the most underrated action movies of the 2010s, which has set expectations for the sequel incredibly high.

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera sees Butler’s Big Nick head overseas and join the heist with O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s Donnie after failing to stop his crew’s big score on the Federal Reserve in Los Angeles in the first movie. The second picks up years after the original (it’s a bit unclear as to exactly how long after) and sees Big Nick grappling with his failure. Unlike the first, the sequel is quite the mixed bag that struggles to find its footing for much of the story. Yet it still manages to deliver some incredibly thrilling and unsurprisingly hilarious highs with some confusing lows that force you to abandon all sense of logic to buy into. 

‘Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’ Is a Heist/Crime Thriller, Not an Action Movie

Similar to Den of Thieves, Pantera is more of a thriller than a classic action movie; much of the runtime revolves around Nick and Donnie planning the heist with the rest of their crew, relying on elements of suspense and intrigue over pure action. This formula works perfectly for Den of Thieves, but the sequel often finds itself caught up with inconsequential and frankly boring scenes that will have you ready to move on to the next part of the story. It’s not until the third act that the movie cranks up the intensity and hooks you up to an adrenaline drip that will have you sitting on pins and needles with bated breath, anxious and terrified to see what happens next.

While Den of Thieves 2: Pantera could certainly knock its two-hour and 24-minute runtime down closer to two hours, the flawlessly executed third act makes the wait mostly worth it. Christian Gudegast — who made his directorial debut on Den of Thieves and returned to helm the sequel — does a stellar job not only delivering a final action sequence as good as the highway scene in the first but also producing a sequence even better. Nick and Donnie’s infiltration of the World Diamond Center is so thrilling that it’s almost paralyzing; it’s impossible to look away and not be invested in them seeing their mission through.

And it’s Nick and Donnie who are once again at the core of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, but their dynamic in the sequel is one of friendship not foes. Nick spends the entirety of Den of Thieves trying to hunt down Donnie and his crew, led by Ray Merrimen (Pablo Schreiber), but much of the sequel sees them spending time together not only planning the heist, but going to bars, enjoying a drunk meal, and bonding over their past. The film does a mostly fine job establishing Nick and Donnie as not just partners, but friends, but Butler and Jackson Jr.’s performances are really what drives it home.

“Big Nick” O’Brien Is Gerard Butler’s Most Entertaining Role

Gerard Butler will always be known for playing King Leonidas in Zack Snyder’s 300, but his role as Big Nick in the Den of Thieves movies is easily his most entertaining. Butler embraces this role with such authenticity that it’s impossible to imagine him playing another character while watching the franchise. Anytime Big Nick is on screen, you’re just waiting for him to crack a joke or a smart-ass comment that’s going to earn a laugh from the crowd, or get him punched in the face — maybe even both. Even in his mid-50s, Butler perfectly embodies an older action star who may be past his prime but can still hang with the best of the best.

O’Shea Jackson Jr. also steps into a much bigger role in Pantera after it’s revealed at the end of Den of Thieves that he was the true mastermind behind the Federal Reserve heist. Jackson serves as the perfect scene partner for Butler, and their reunion is arguably the best scene in the entire movie. Big Nick tells him early on that he’s not a killer, and the two lean into this dynamic for the film’s duration, with Donnie acting as the brains and a softer touch within the group and Big Nick saying whatever thought comes to his head, completely unbothered by how everyone around him is going to respond.

The rest of the supporting cast does a mostly fine job, but nothing in the same realm as Butler or Jackson. Evin Ahmad is the biggest standout in the supporting group, but her role as Jovanna is much more complimentary to the group at large, and she doesn’t have an independent story that drives the narrative forward on its own. Terry Stacey also deserves his share of accolades for his work as the cinematographer on Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, helping to produce some beautiful shots and scenes that will surely stand the test of time and hold up even years later.

There’s More Coming in the Den of Thieves Franchise

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’s ending will likely be controversial among the fans, but it certainly does an effective job of setting up the future of the franchise. Den of Thieves 2 achieves more than the original with the Nick and Donnie pairing, but it falls well short of the 2018 classic by failing to provide a worthy or compelling adversary to the primary heist crew. Nonetheless, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is still worth the watch and a mostly great time, especially for Gerard Butler and O’Shea Jackson Jr. fans.

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is now playing in theaters everywhere. Follow Agents of Fandom socials for all the latest entertainment news and reviews.