Director Timur Bekmambetov Says 'Dusk Watch' Will Happen At Some Point

It's been a few years since we last heard about Dusk Watch. For a variety of reasons, we still haven't seen the third installment in the Russian series, despite previous installments Night Watch and Day Watch being considerable box office hits overseas. Director Timur Bekmambetov is a rather busy man these days, but he hasn't forgotten about Dusk Watch, and he says it will happen at some point.

Loosely based on the Sergei Lukyanenko novels, Dusk Watch was intended to complete a cinematic trilogy. But it's been almost a decade since we last saw the series' protagonist, Anton Gorodetsky, in the fight between good and evil. The last sequel, Day Watch, left the door open for future stories to be told.

When we spoke with Bekmambetov, he said he knows there are some filmgoers still waiting for Dusk Watch to happen:

I was on an aircraft carrier four years ago for Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. It was in the middle in the Persian Gulf, with about 5,000 people sitting in the hanger, between airplanes in front of the [big] screen. We screened the movie for them. After we finished, the General said, "Now, we can ask the director of the movie some questions." The first guy that stood up said, "When will we see Dusk Watch?" [Laughs] It was an interesting twist.

To the Ben-Hur director, these stories are very personal. Although Bekmambetov sees the recent film he produced, Hardcore Henry, as being a spiritual sequel of sorts to the Russian fantasy movies – a different mythology told through "crazy, visually interesting" images — he still believes Dusk Watch will eventually come to fruition:

I think it will happen, for sure. The mythology is so smart: good and evil made a deal around the world together. It's how we live today. I mean, an election is happening [laughs], whether it's happening in the U.S. or Russia, it looks like Night Watch. Night Watch was great, because it was a very serious movie. It was dressed as entertainment, but underneath it's a very serious question about moral choices we make everyday — and the freedom to make those choices everyday. The whole idea of Night Watch was good and evil, but you should be free to make your choice every time. It's an honor to have the freedom to make those choices, and it's what makes us human beings. You can pick the right side or you can pick the wrong side. The freedom to make that choice makes our lives interesting and meaningful.

If Dusk Watch ever happens, would Bekmambetov return to direct? At this point, it's unclear. Around 2008, when he was promoting Wanted, the director said he wasn't sure if he could bring anything new to the final film. Hopefully he's had a change of heart over the years and intends to finish this trilogy himself.

Make sure to check back soon for our full interview with Timur Bekmambetov.