Chris Hemsworth's Extraction 2 return is cause for excitement but only highlights why the original's cryptic ending was pointless. While an American remake of Indonesian action classic The Raid never came together, Netflix's Extraction became the next best thing. Extraction's simple but effective story combined with relentless pacing and creative action made it an instant streaming success. The film ended on a seemingly tragic note for lead character Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth), where he's shot multiple times and plunges into a river during the final battle.
He at least succeeded in rescuing Rudhraksh Jaiswal's Ovi, but in Extraction's ambiguous ending, a blurred figure - who sure looks a lot like Tyler - is seen watching Ovi from afar. Extraction's story didn't really require a sequel, but given how the movie's writers/producers The Russos love to create franchises for themselves (The Gray Man, Citadel, etc), the final shot was meant to tease a possible follow-up. The announcement of Extraction 2 and Hemsworth's return removed all doubt as to Rake's fate - which can't help but make Extraction's ending feel like a cheap cliffhanger in retrospect.
Extraction 2's Trailer Proves The Original Movie's Cryptic Ending Was Pointless
Extraction 2's trailer sets up the next job for Rake and his mercenary team, who are tasked with another rescue mission, this time in Eastern Europe. Extraction 2's trailer teases some of the new action sequences ahead, including a much-hyped "one shot" setpiece that lasts 21 minutes. The preview also reveals how exactly Rake survived his fall, where his crew - including Golshifteh Farahani's Nik - pull him from the river and whisk him off to a hospital. After a period of recovery and questioning why he's even still alive, Tyler's soon ready for his next mission, which only calls into question the purpose of Extraction's "mysterious" ending.
Unless Extraction 2 took the bold step of not even revealing if Hemsworth was coming back as a way of building hype, the original's closing image served little purpose storywise. The sequel's preview shows step-by-step how Hemsworth's Rake is still among the living, and answers the question in the most obvious fashion imaginable too. Extraction's ending drew some flak upon release for being needlessly vague, especially since the rest of the film was refreshingly straightforward. The fact Extraction 2 appears to be fast-forwarding past it confirms the cryptic approach was the wrong call.
Chris Hemsworth's Extraction Return Creates Another Problem For The Franchise
If nothing else, Extraction 2 is making Rake's near-death experience part of the narrative, where he seeks to find some meaning in life; while killing many other people along the way. Resolving Extraction's "cliffhanger" does create an interesting problem for the franchise moving ahead. They've already used the "fake death" card once, and it's incredibly unlikely they'll try it again for Extraction 2. This leaves the series without many other places to go, short of actually killing Rake. Considering it's a franchise custom-built around Hemsworth, that's also unlikely.
