Aditya Chopra is bringing back his most charming RAW agent on a new mission. The Yash Raj Films’ head honcho is now turning the company’s biggest blockbuster, Pathaan, into a standalone franchise, further expanding the star-studded YRF Spy Universe which has collectively amassed approximately Rs. 1,685 crore nett at the Indian box office from five espionage movies since its launch with Ek Tha Tiger in 2015. 

Shah Rukh Khan will return as the suave RAW agent, Pathan, with Deepika Padukone as Rubina Mohsin, leading a new team of agents in the fight against terrorism. The twist in the tale, however, is that Siddharth Anand will not be directing the sequel. PeepingMoon.com has exclusively learned that Aditya Chopra is handing the directorial baton of Pathaan 2 to another filmmaker to infuse freshness into Pathaan’s story. 

Pathaan 2 to set the stage for Tiger vs. Pathaan

“Aditya Chopra is strategically choosing the directors for each YRF spy universe film and has never repeated directors for its sequel movies, as is evident from the Tiger and War sequels. The tradition continues with Pathaan 2 as well, with Siddharth Anand stepping aside for a new director to offer a fresh perspective to Shah Rukh’s swashbuckling spy character. While the director for the sequel hasn't been finalized, plans are underway to take the project on the floor by the end of this year,” said a source close to the development. 

Siddharth Anand’s departure from Pathaan 2, however, does not mark the end of his partnership with Yash Raj Films. The War and Fighter director is enlisted with the responsibility to helm the YRF spy universe’s biggest project in development, Tiger vs. Pathaan, which promises an epic faceoff between two of India's biggest superstars, Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan. Although Tiger vs. Pathaan's filming schedule is still up in the air, Pathaan 2 is anticipated to pave the way for that enormous confrontation on the road. Sidharth Anand is also contemplating another project before Tiger vs. Pathaan but he is yet to finalize one.

SRK and Siddharth Anand collaborate for an action thriller

Meanwhile, SRK and Siddharth Anand are already working together again after Pathaan. The Bollywood superstar reportedly stars in the director's next production venture, King, set to be directed by Kahaani fame Sujoy Ghosh. The action thriller also features SRK’s daughter, Suhana Khan, in her theatrical debut and will go on floors next month in Mumbai. 

Pathaan 2 will be the eighth film in the YRF spy universe, which kicked off with Salman Khan’s Ek Tha Tiger and was followed by Tiger Zinda Hai, War, Pathaan, and Tiger 3. Hrithik Roshan and Jr. NTR’s War 2, directed by Ayan Mukherji, is the next on the slate, followed by an untitled Alia Bhatt, Sharvari, and Bobby Deol starrer espionage thriller set to go on floors in the second half of this year.