'National Treasure' TV Show Bringing Back One of the Main Stars

By Daniel S. Levine

At least one member of the original National Treasure film franchise cast will star in the Disney+ series. Unfortunately, it's not Nicolas Cage or Diane Kruger. Justin Bartha, who played Riley Poole in the two movies, will have a guest role in the series. The show is now in production in Louisiana and stars Lisette Alexis as a new treasure hunter.

Alexis stars as Jess, a brilliant and resourceful Dreamer who begins an adventure to recover a lost Pan-American treasure with a secret link to her parents. Oscar-winner Catherine Zeta-Jones will play Billie, a billionaire and black-market antique dealer who also has her sights on the treasure. Zuri Reed, Jordan Rodrigues, Antonio Cipriano, Jake Austin Walker and Lyndon Smith also star.

Bartha is the first actor involved in the original National Treasure movies to have a role in the series, reports The Hollywood Reporter. However, members of the behind-the-scenes team are involved. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer and writers Cormac and Marianne Wibberley signed on as executive producers. Rick Muiragi is the show's writer, while Mira Nair (Queen of Katwe) is directing.

The National Treasure franchise kicked off in 2004 with the first movie. Cage starred as historian Benjamin Franklin Gates, who steals the Declaration of Independence to use a map the Freemasons drew on the back of the document. Kruger starred as Dr. Abigail Chase, an archivist who reluctantly joins Gates. Bartha's Riley is a computer expert who joined Gates on his quest. Cage, Kruger, and Bartha all returned for the 2007 sequel, National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

A third National Treasure movie has been discussed for years, but it seems unlikely to be made. During a Reddit AMA, Cage told fans a third National Treasure movie would "probably not" happen. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter last month, Cage said it was unlikely National Treasure 3 or Face/Off 2 would ever happen.

"I have not heard hide nor hair about it. So often, these things we read about are just conjecture without any base or foundation to it. I feel the same about National Treasure 3," he told THR. "It's been 14 years. There's no there, there. So, is it fun to think about? Sure. Would [Face/Off 2] be an exciting movie to make? Oh, hell yeah. But John Woo was such a huge voice in that movie. It couldn't be a remake. I think these filmmakers even said as much — that something like that would have to be a sequel."

Although Gates will not be involved in the next treasure hunt, Cage is back in theaters soon. He plays himself in the new comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, which opens on April 22. He is now filming Universal's Renfield, a comedy starring Nicholas Hoult as Dracula's henchman and Cage as the vampire. 

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