Tenet may not have saved cinema, but it does have ample potential for a sequel embedded in its twisting narrative and impressive ending. That may be the inventive sci-fi movie's most unexpected revelation, given the precedent usually set by the director and while there is an argument to suggest that Nolan's open-ended narrative is by design and not a set-up, there is a lot in Tenet to suggest it could work in tandem with a sequel. In fact, the prospect of cleverly tying the two together may present Nolan with the kind of challenge he'd revel in.
After challenging audiences with a complex premise and story with as much going on beyond the confines of its runtime as within them, Tenet presents the cerebral director with plenty of options for a potential sequel. Though it's well established that Nolan doesn't make sequels for his original films, he's no stranger to helming franchises of massive weight. In fact, his Dark Knight Trilogy ranks among the most well-received film series of all time with critics and audiences alike. So perhaps a franchise built around his latest film, a movie bursting at the seams with world-building efforts, makes a strong case for Nolan to reconsider his statement on original-film-sequels.
Related: Christopher Nolan Says He Didn't Have Final Say Over Tenet's Release
Tenet intriguingly leaves its characters in several states: The Protagonist (John David Washington), Neil (Robert Pattinson), and Ives (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) agree to split the algorithm into pieces and hide them in different places and times. Neil sets off to fulfill his predestined sacrificial role at the climax of the temporal pincer movement. Kat Barton (Elizabeth Debecki) picks up her son from school, where she is nearly assassinated by Priya (Dimple Kapadia) before the Protagonist intervenes ahead of setting in motion the Tenet organization to ensure the safety of humanity's past, present, and future. These endpoints offer Nolan and company ample creative opportunities for a variety of sequel, prequel, or series concepts.
Sequel: The Protagonist Founds Tenet
This option would read as a direct sequel to the original film. The Protagonist, having just saved Kat Barton, could continue to cultivate that relationship while putting in place the institutions which would allow the Tenet operation to succeed as it did during the events of the first movie. The sequel could go further into Barton's life post-Sator and her dealings in the high-stakes art business. Meanwhile, the Protagonist could begin recruiting: the gentleman who initially recruited him on the ship? Need him. Ives and the operatives from the pincer movement? Gotta have them. But the most interesting recruit ties the Barton and Tenet threads together in the form of young Neil.
A popular theory has emerged as to Neil's origins in the part of the timeline not shown in Tenet, with many speculating that Neil is Kat Barton's son. Whether this head canon was Nolan's intent all along or simply makes the most sense to run with now that it's gained traction among fans, this could make for an interesting origin story that adds depth and context to the characters of the original film. Neil mentions at Tenet's conclusion that this is the end of a long friendship; perhaps that friendship could take the form of a mentorship in the future, with the Protagonist watching Neil mature until he's ready to the fight for humanity.
A Neil-and-Protagonist Prequel
And speaking of Neil, his arc begs to be expounded upon. A sort of prequel to Tenet (it's hard to say what is 'prequel' and what is 'sequel' when you're moving forwards AND backward through the timeline) could explore the "adventures" Neil hints at in Tenet featuring him and the Protagonist. With the Bond tropes thoroughly established in Tenet and Nolan's love for the genre, a temporal espionage film or series featuring John David Washington and Robert Pattinson's pre-built chemistry could make for an entertaining prospect while also providing an opportunity for further world-building.
An integral part of the world Tenet builds takes the form of the almighty Algorithm, the doomsday device at the center of the original film's conflict. Whether Sator and his organization are the only group of time-fluid villains for Neil and the Protagonist to fight is up for debate, but it is established that sometime in the future, some Oppenheimer-esque scientist created The Algorithm and made an effort to dismantle and hide it across time. Perhaps a prequel featuring Neil and the Protagonist serves as a convenient avenue to dig deeper into that story thread.
The Algorithm Through Time: A Limited Series?
That Algorithm, fixed in material form so as to limit the transmission of its information through time, tells an interesting tale all its own. Some scientist discovered its destructive capabilities in the future and decided it was best scattered through the past. How did they arrive at that conclusion, and how did they go about accessing the past? These questions and more could form the beginnings of a limited series chronicling the Algorithm through various points in the Tenet timeline. From Sator's procedural collection of pieces through Ives and the Protagonist having to once again hide them, there's bountiful creative opportunity to seize in such a premise.
Several high-profile filmmakers have forayed into the fast-growing world of prestige television. In an increasingly celebrated television landscape many auteurs have flourished. David Fincher's creative command of House of Cards and Mindhunter would suggest Nolan might find a healthy fit with the right production team. The scope and scale of such titans as Game of Thrones establish a financial precedent that a Nolan series would likely demand. Alex Garland, creative force behind such modern science fiction classics as Ex Machina (2015) and Annihilation (2018), has demonstrated an ability for the genre to thrive in today's ecosystem with this year's first season of Devs.
It could certainly take some convincing for the notorious cinema purist Nolan to migrate his gargantuan ideas from IMAX projectors to home theaters, but stranger things have happened. And with the industry in the midst of sea change resultant of a shift to streaming due to complications from the COVID-19 pandemic, perhaps highly motivated streamers could convince the famously anti-streaming Nolan to break with tradition in this brave new world. Whatever the ultimate decision may be, it's clear that there remains a tremendous amount of creative material left to mine in this most recent of Nolan's inventive concepts. With so much in the timeline so far still unseen, it stands to reason audiences would be hungry for more Tenet content, and hopefully, Nolan is just as keen to provide it.
