It seems the makers of Jailer 2 have listened to the barrage online criticism of the roles of some its key characters being chopped in the theatrical version. And are making amends.
The action-comedy, starring superstar Rajinikanth and many leading stars drawn from across Indian film industries, will have an extra runtime of about 30 minutes in its online avatar, according to News 18. The theatrical version has a runtime of 175 minutes.
The movie, which is expected to stream on Amazon Prime Video and SunNXT after November 10, will feature more scenes involving Mohanlal, Hrithik Roshan, Vijay Sethupathi and Santhanam, whose role was entirely lopped off from the final cut, according to News 18. An exact date has not been revealed yet.
The film’s producer—Sun Pictures, owned by Indian media baron Kalanithi Maran—has not commented on the issue.
Box office performance
Jailer 2 has had a successful run at the global box office, collecting Rs 8.16 billion as on November 3, data from industry tracker Sacnilk show. Released in theatres on October 15 during the Navaratri holiday season in India, the film raked in half that figure within the first few days.
In the process, the Nelson Dilipkumar directorial became the first Tamil film to cross the Rs 8-billion-mark in gross collections. It is also one of 2026 biggest hits in India.
The movie is also the first Tamil film to collect Rs 750 million each in the four south Indian markets of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Sore point over cut scenes
The box office performance was eclipsed by sore points that emerged over scenes of many actors not making it to the final cut, especially those of Mohanlal’s role Mathew.
The Malayalam screen legend, plays a gangster who helps Muthuvel Pandian (Rajinikanth) in Jailer (2023) and its sequel.
Not only was Mathew’s role shorter in Jailer 2, fans even pointed out that moments teased in its trailer were also not present in the version that hit theatres.
Antony Perumbavoor, film producer, long-time associate of Mohanlal as well as his confidant and business partner, gave voice to that discontent. At a recent function in Kochi, Perumbavoor said in Malayalam: “That isn’t (something) happy for us Malayalis. We share that unhappiness too.”
Jailer 2 features an ensemble cast, including SJ Suryah, Vidya Balan, Mithun Chakraborty, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Namo Narayana, Ramya Krishnan, Yogi Babu and Mirnaa Menon. Anirudh Ravichander composed its music.
Source: Khaleej Times
