National Treasure 3: A third National Treasure film is moving forward. Director Jon Turteltaub made the announcement on Friday.
He confirmed that Disney has approved a script for the long-awaited sequel.
Turteltaub shared the news during a live taping of the National Treasure Hunt podcast in Philadelphia.
He said he had been debating whether to reveal the update that night. He ultimately decided to make the announcement live.
"It's happening," Turteltaub told the audience. He noted that the crowd was the first to hear the news directly from him.
The director was careful to temper expectations. He explained that a green light in Hollywood doesn't guarantee a finished film.
He used a blunt example to make his point. If star Nicolas Cage were unable to continue, he said, the project likely wouldn't move forward.
If something happened to him instead, he joked, the film would probably still get made.
Turteltaub also directed the 2007 sequel, National Treasure: Book of Secrets.
He said the team now has a script he's happy with. According to Turteltaub, Disney has responded positively as well.
The studio reportedly told him the script "sounds like a movie we can make."
The original National Treasure franchise follows historian Ben Gates, played by Cage.
In the first film, Gates steals the Declaration of Independence. He does so to uncover clues leading to a legendary hidden treasure.
He races against a former colleague, played by Sean Bean, who wants the treasure for himself.
The first two films combined have earned more than $800 million worldwide.
The franchise expanded further in 2022. Disney+ released a spin-off series, National Treasure: Edge of History. The show starred Catherine Zeta-Jones.
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