‘Den of Thieves 3’ Just Got Its Setting Teased, and Fans Are Already Dreaming of a Heist in This Location

Heist franchises live and die by their ability to keep reinventing the wheel, sending their crews to increasingly exotic locations for each new job. Gerard Butler’s ‘Den of Thieves’ series has followed that exact playbook, moving from the streets of Los Angeles to the diamond vaults of Europe across its first two installments.

With ‘Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’ having wrapped up its story on a note that left the franchise’s future wide open, fans have spent months speculating about where the crew might strike next. Development on a third film was greenlit almost immediately after the sequel’s release, but concrete details about its setting have remained scarce.

Now star O’Shea Jackson Jr. has offered fans their earliest tease yet of where ‘Den of Thieves 3’ might be heading, even as filming has yet to actually begin. Speaking in an interview promoting his new comedy crime thriller ‘Idiots,’ Jackson explained that his character Donnie’s options for locations are limited given how the story has unfolded so far.

According to Jackson, Donnie “can’t go to the States anymore” following the fallout from the first film’s Federal Reserve heist, narrowing down the realistic settings available to the franchise moving forward. When the idea of Japan came up during the conversation, Jackson lit up with enthusiasm for the concept, even while confirming that the third movie won’t actually be set there.

“I think it would be so dope if I had a heist movie in Japan. I want to film in Japan, where I can meet my future wife and stay there forever. I feel like that would work,” Jackson said, speaking to ScreenRant.

While Japan appears to be off the table for now, Jackson’s comments hint at other possibilities still on the horizon for the franchise. The original 2018 ‘Den of Thieves’ ended with a tease showing Donnie working at a bar across from a diamond exchange, a setup later revealed to be based in London rather than the setting the sequel ultimately took. Since ‘Pantera’ never directly addressed what happened with that London plotline, the door remains open for the threequel to finally pay off that dangling thread.

Franchise creator Christian Gudegast, who has written and directed both previous installments, previously teased that a potential idea for the third film could involve Africa, describing it as a “great adventure” during earlier press for ‘Pantera.’ Whether that concept ultimately makes it into the finished film remains unclear, especially with production still yet to kick off.

Jackson has also previously teased that his character will undergo a significant physical transformation for the threequel, revealing he’s been on a dedicated fitness journey that will leave Donnie looking noticeably different when the film eventually arrives. That detail, combined with the franchise’s track record of taking its heists to new corners of the globe, has fans eager for any concrete update on when cameras will actually start rolling.

Gerard Butler is expected to reprise his role as Sheriff Nick O’Brien alongside Jackson’s Donnie, continuing the unlikely partnership that has defined the franchise since its start. With Lionsgate backing the project and Gudegast attached to write and direct once again, the pieces remain in place for a third chapter, even if the timeline for production continues to stay frustratingly vague.

For now, fans will have to keep speculating about exactly where Donnie’s next job will take him, even as Jackson’s Japan comments have already sparked plenty of excitement about what could still be in store for a future installment.

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