NOBODY 2 (2025) review
written by: Derek Kolstad and Aaron Rabin
produced by: Kelly McCormick, David Leitch, Bob Odenkirk, Marc Provissiero, and Braden Aftergood
directed by: Timothy Tjahjanto
rated: R (for strong bloody violence and language throughout)
runtime: 89 min.
U.S. release date: August 15, 2025
After writing the first three “John Wick” movies, screenwriter Derek Kolstad branched out to make an action comedy with Bob Odenkirk as the unlikely lead. Universal Pictures dropped “Nobody” in theaters during the spring of 2021, without a bona fide lead or recognized director (Ilya Naishuller, of “Hardcore Harry” fame and recently “Heads of State”) to draw viewers to theaters during a pandemic. It may not have been a huge hit, but it was pretty fun and funny, with Odenkirk playing a seemingly average family man with a hidden double life and a simmering dark side. No one was expecting a sequel; regardless, “Nobody 2” is here, co-written by Kolstad and Aaron Rabin with director Timo Tjahjanto (“The Night Comes for Us”) at the helm. While it’s offering more of the same, there’s more overt comedy here and a reliance on supporting players that essentially make this a violent family flick.
When we last saw former government agent, Hutch Mansell (Odenkirk), he had torched a hefty load of Russian mafia money. He’s now in deep debt to The Barber (Colin Salmon), his former handler, and has been accepting assassination jobs to pay it off. After what occurred in “Nobody”, Hutch is still trying to keep his side gig departmentalized from his family, but at the same time, his once-estranged wife Becca (Connie Nielsen) is now aware of his once-secretive double life. However, juggling a hitman schedule with father/husband duties has become problematic, with Hutch often missing out on events involving their two kids, Brady (Gage Munroe) and Sammy (Paisley Cadorath).
Sensing the distance and growing resentment from his wife, Hutch declares he will plan a vacation. He decides to take his Ohio-based family to the only place his father, David (Christopher Lloyd), ever took him and his adopted brother, Harry (RZA), to: Plummerville, a tourist-trap town in Wisconsin. He’s hoping this cheesy water park resort (think Wisconsin Dells if it were situated on International Drive in Orlando, Florida) will create the same kind of fond memories for his family that he had with his, and even invites his father on the trip. It’s a welcome break from the assisted living home where the elder Mansell resides.
One of the few themes offered in “Nobody 2” is the philosophical phrase, “No matter where you go, that’s where you’ll be”, which basically means “You can’t escape yourself.” The Banker tries to stress this with Hutch, emphasizing that he’s not the type of guy who can simply turn off the skills and temperament he has (consciously and subconsciously) acquired over the years, but Hutch isn’t hearing it. He wants to maintain the vision of an idyllic holiday with his family, mainly to convince himself that it can be done. The problem with that vision is Hutch’s temper, which we learn is something that he’s unintentionally passed on to his teenage son, Brady, who recently acquired a black eye at school.
Unfortunately for Hutch, the town of Plummerville has changed significantly since he was last there as a young lad. When they check in, their rooms are outfitted with a cheaply done Polynesian motif for some reason, with Hutch and Becca’s suite equipped with a heart-shaped jacuzzi and a stale cigar scent. Attempting to make the most of it, the family makes their way to the waterpark, only to learn that it’s been closed (a familiar scene for anyone who’s been disappointed while vacationing). As a consolation, they are given vouchers to the nearby hot dog joint and additional vouchers for the adjacent arcade. It’s okay, family memories can be made anywhere.
Hutch’s war veteran father is possibly the smartest member of the family. He takes off to a nearby lodge, which he apparently used to stay at long ago. It’s unclear whether he is renting it or the owner, but it seems like a better option than staying in the heart of local tourism. The location will no doubt factor in later during the movie’s inevitable action climax.
It doesn’t take long for Hutch and family to meet the local sheriff, a shady character named Abel (Colin Hanks), and the corrupt theme park operator, Wyatt Martin (John Ortiz). The latter of whom naturally has an insecure bully for a teenage son, Max (Lucius Hoyos), who gets into it with Hutch’s son, Brady, at the arcade mentioned above. That is where everything escalates in “Nobody 2”, and one could easily say it’s all because Hutch Mansell has a short fuse and has zero de-escalation skills apart from bashing in heads.
Sure, this is a guy who could benefit from therapy, but what was established in the last movie is how Odenkirk’s character serves as a form of catharsis for viewers who can relate to a guy who is done putting up with the a-holes all around him. Hutch is primarily triggered whenever he witnesses an injustice against those who are either innocent or defenseless…which is what occurs when one of the arcade employees slaps his daughter upside the back of her head as she walks past him. We know that’s uncalled for, and we know Hutch just can’t let that go.
Word of that altercation spreads like wildfire since Plummerville is a place where everyone finds out everything. Because shady and corrupt characters typically report to someone higher up the chain, Hutch’s behavior earns the attention of a formidable crime boss named Lendina (a rascally game Sharon Stone), who will obliterate anyone who threatens her bootlegging operation.
“Nobody 2” confirms that Hutch isn’t the kind of protagonist who will experience any arc or growth. The screenwriters are more interested in placing him and his short fuse in different locations to see what will set him off. The goal is to find the funny in violent mayhem in as many different hostile ways as possible. Such a situation occurs on a “duck boat” (which turns out to be the polar opposite of the military vehicle Hutch hoped it would be) when a handful of the sheriff’s goons flex their testosterone towards Hutch. The movie’s third act smackdown finds the Mansell family defending themselves in a couple of locations: the aforementioned lodge (which is essentially a cabin) and the rundown theme park.
The action is first and foremost a fun time due to the actors – especially Odenkirk, who is once again a blast to watch in action mode – committed to the ridiculous shenanigans that occur, especially Stone, who is on board with every ounce of overacting she can muster. She’s quite entertaining to watch in a role that would likely be forgettable in anyone else’s hands.
Those who got a kick out of the last movie and expect more humorous, albeit brutal, action sequences will not be disappointed. There are indeed recycled bits from the first movie, and somehow I was okay with that. “Nobody 2” is barely an hour and a half, and that’s just fine considering there’s no plan to delve into any real character development or provide any real repercussions for the cacophony of violence. If there is to be another sequel, someone in the Mansell family has to bite the big one instead of fighting their way out of precarious situations in stunt-person style.
On that note, you don’t have to have seen the previous movie to go along with this one. I saw this sequel while sitting next to a friend of mine, who hadn’t seen the first movie, and he thoroughly enjoyed it.
RATING: **1/2
