He had been down a few times, but nothing could ever take him out. That’s Gerard Butler as Secret Service Agent Mike Banning in the global box office hits Olympus Has Fallen (2013) and London Has Fallen (2016).
This year, this agent who is referred to as “the President’s top guardian angel” is going to get beat up yet again, the question is, how will Butler’s Banning rise from this fall?
Angel Has Fallen is the third entry to the Fallen franchise. Mike Banning is selected by U.S. President Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman) to be the director of the Secret Service. But before he could assume his new appointment, Banning finds himself in a crucial position to protect the president as they are attacked by explosive drones.
The next thing he knows, he is already in the hospital, handcuffed and being charged with the attempted murder of President Trumbull. FBI Agent Thompson (Jada Pinkett-Smith) is convinced of Banning’s culpability because he is the only one in his team who survives the tragedy.
Hellbent on proving his innocence and bringing the real culprit to justice, Banning escapes capture. As the FBI and his own agency are hot on his trail, Banning tracks down his father (Nick Nolte) to get his help.
Just like in all his previous battles, he must keep his family from harm, keep the president alive, and save the country from imminent danger. The big difference is, he is also fighting for his life.
Directed by Ric Roman Waugh (Snitch, Shot Caller), Angel Has Fallen offers non-stop action while taking the audience to what Butler describes as a “much deeper, darker journey” of Mike Banning. Reports have it that two other scripts had been scrapped in favor of this story, which is said to have been inspired by The Fugitive, The Bourne Identity, and Taken.
Butler said in an interview back in 2017, “I couldn’t even see a way to make a third (Fallen film), you know we’d joke about it ‘What, Tokyo? Hong Kong? What is it going to be!?’ …Until this idea came along and until Ric came along – now I’ve gone from not knowing what to do with it, to thinking this is going to be the best one.”
In the same interview, Butler shared that Waugh told him that he wanted to make a movie with him “that’ll be remembered for three generations”. In response to that, Butler said, “Well what about Has Fallen 3?”, and Waugh said, “That’s not what I was thinking!” Butler said to the reluctant director, ‘Read this script, it’s kind of like The Fugitive, take it and let’s put your spin on it.’
Fast forward to May 2019, Waugh posted the trailer of Angel Has Fallen on Twitter and wrote, “For years Gerard Butler and I have been wanting to collaborate. Damn glad it was this one. It was definitely worth the wait!”
Angel Has Fallen opens in Philippine cinemas nationwide on Aug. 21. From Viva International Pictures and MVP Entertainment.
