'The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard' Cast: Frank Grillo Joins Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, And Salma Hayek

The Hitman's Bodyguard was a nice little moneymaker for Lionsgate, pulling in over $175 million on a $30 million budget. A sequel was quickly given the go-ahead, and original cast members Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, and Salma Hayek are coming back for more. Now the follow-up – which has the truly awful title of The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard – has added another tough guy action star to its ranks: Frank Grillo, who's appeared in films like The Purge: Anarchy, The Grey, and Warrior.

The original 2017 movie centered on a disgraced bodyguard (Reynolds) who is embroiled in an international plot involving a ruthless dictator and a hitman (Jackson) who is going to testify against the villain. Hayek played the hitman's wife, who spent most of the film in prison before ultimately being freed.

The sequel deals with Jackson and Hayek's characters enlisting Reynolds to help them with a mission on Italy's Amalfi coast. At least the setting should be an improvement over the original, which looked like one of those low-budget DTV action movies that shoots in Eastern Europe because it's cheap to film there.

Variety reports that Grillo "is expected to play an Interpol agent who needs Reynolds, Jackson, and Hayek's help to prevent a cyber attack in Europe."

Grillo has flirted with leading man status over the past couple of years in movies like The Purge: Anarchy and Wheelman, but he still seems comfortable playing high octane supporting parts. He built his career playing those types of physical roles, eventually stepping into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Crossbones in Captain America: The Winter Soldier; The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard will mark a reunion with Jackson, who plays Nick Fury in the MCU. He should be able to play an Interpol agent in his sleep.

Here's the synopsis for the original film:

The world's top protection agent (Ryan Reynolds) is called upon to guard the life of his mortal enemy, one of the world's most notorious hitmen (Samuel L. Jackson). The relentless bodyguard and manipulative assassin have been on the opposite end of the bullet for years and are thrown together for a wildly outrageous 24 hours. During their raucous and hilarious adventure from England to the Hague, they encounter high-speed car chases, outlandish boat escapades and a merciless Eastern European dictator (Gary Oldman) who is out for blood. Salma Hayek joins the mayhem as Jackson's equally notorious wife.