Denzel Washington will return for The Equalizer 3

The Equalizer 3 is in the works, with Denzel Washington returning to star.

The films, inspired by the '80s TV series of the same name, follow Washington's character Robert McCall, a man with a mysterious past – once a Marine, he faked his death to start over, but ends up drawing on his skills to protect a young prostitute named Teri (Chloë Grace Moretz) in The Equalizer. In the sequel, he sets out to avenge the death of a friend and former co-worker. Both films were directed by Antoine Fuqua.

"They have written the third Equalizer, so I'm scheduled to do that," Washington told Collider. "So I gotta get in shape and start beating people up again. I get to beat people up again. The Tragedy of Macbeth and then going and beating some people up. Can't get any better, right?"

It's not confirmed just yet whether Fuqua will be back to direct the third film, but Collider's sources say the director is in talks to helm the movie – and the report notes that, while negotiations aren't finished, Collider expects The Equalizer 3 to be Fuqua's next film following Emancipation on Apple TV Plus, starring Will Smith.

Washington most recently starred in The Tragedy of Macbeth opposite Frances McDormand, and by the sounds of things, The Equalizer 3 will be his next film. 2021 also saw the release of The Little Things, which featured Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto.

There's no release date for The Equalizer 3 just yet, but in the meantime, check out our guide to all of 2022's upcoming major movie release dates to get planning those theater trips.