One of the quieter and more overlooked successes of 2011 was The Lincoln Lawyer, starring Matthew McConaughey as Michael Connelly's slick LA lawyer Mickey Haller. A spin-off TV series is already in development at ABC, but Lionsgate vice-chairman Michael Burns has just revealed that Haller will also be heading back to cinema screens.
The Haller novels are a kind of subsidiary series to Connelly's larger collection about homicide detective Harry Bosch. Haller is Bosch's half brother, and the two have occasionally shared page space. There are currently 15 books in the Bosch strand, and four in Haller's.
If the films follow the novels' chronology, the next ought to be The Brass Verdict, in which Haller and Bosch join forces to investigate the murder of a defence attorney, and uncover corruption in the judicial system. After years in rights limbo, Connelly recently reacquired Bosch from Paramount, so with his involvement, that crossover would certainly be possible, and may serve to introduce Bosch for his own future film franchise.
All speculation at this point however: all we have for certain is Burns' assurance that the sequel is underway. Here's hoping that McConaughey remains in situ in the Lincoln town car, Brad Furman gets to direct again, and that John Romano will be on-hand to repeat his sterling work on the screenplay. We'll keep you posted.