Unbreakable 2: Dunn vs. The Beast

M. Night Shyamalan’s sequel to ‘Unbreakable’ starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L Jackson is set to stun audiences with its strong link to ‘Split’ which was released in 2017 starring James McAvoy.

Unbreakable was released in 2000 and it was the first in the series of Mr. Shyamalan’s trilogy. The second in the series was Split which premiered in Texas in 2016 but was officially released in 2017. And now, we have been told that third installment will be called ‘Glass’ and is set to be released on January 18, 2019.

Unbreakable was the story of David Dunn, a superhero, played by Bruce Willis, who discovers he can cheat death after he is the sole survivor of a horrific train crash. He then discovers he has immeasurable strength, a superhuman tolerance for pain and when he touches other people he can see the crimes they have committed.

During the film, he meets a crazed and manipulative comic book shop owner named Elijah Price who is bound to a wheelchair due to his Type I osteogenesis imperfecta which means his bones are extremely fragile and easily broken, hence the title ‘Mr. Glass’. He believes that if he is made of glass and is extremely breakable there must be someone out there that is his counterpart, someone who is ‘unbreakable’. Every superhero needs an arch enemy, and Mr. Glass proves that brains are as much a dangerous weapon as strength is.

The 2017 film, Split, is a contrasting plot which sees us follow the activities of Kevin Wendell Crumb, played by McAvoy, who has a serious mental illness, as he tries to control his 23 different personalities the pressure becomes too much and he ends up kidnapping three teenage girls and imprisoning them in a secret underground facility. Some may say we are now following the villain right into the belly of ‘The Beast’. There are some very disturbing and graphic scenes in the film and amongst his personalities, one is eager to emerge, ‘The Horde’ aka ‘The Beast’.

Right at the end of the Split, we see an American diner at which three women are talking about the events on TV “Wasn’t there a guy in a wheelchair about 15 years ago? What was his name?” David Dunn (Bruce Willis) then leans forward and says, “Mr. Glass.”

But what links the two films apart from the cameo? Well, when Kevin gives in to his split personality of ‘The Beast’ who consumes human beings he becomes indestructible. This is fuelled by his tragic back story of abuse, not unlike some of the traumatic experiences in Dunn’s past.

‘Glass’ will be the final part of the series and the follow up to Split this is what we know so far:

“Following the conclusion of Split, Glass finds Dunn pursuing Crumb’s superhuman figure of The Beast in a series of escalating encounters, while the shadowy presence of Price emerges as an orchestrator who holds secrets critical to both men.”

Some questions we might want to ask as an audience is since Unbreakable was released in 2000, what has David Dunn been doing? Has he stepped up as a hero? And why after all these years does he finally decide to fight?

However, this ominous sounding plot has us hooked and we can’t wait to see what M. Night Shyamalan produces, but if it’s anything like his last two films in the series we shall not be disappointed!

But the biggest question is: The Beast vs. The unbreakable man, who will win?