After years of waiting for a new film in the franchise, National Treasure: Edge of History showrunner Cormac Wibberley teases plans for a Nicolas Cage return. Wibberley, who co-wrote Cage's original National Treasure movies, acts as both showrunner and a writer for the Disney+ series. National Treasure: Edge of History replaces Cage’s role with lead actor Lisette Olivera, who plays Jess Valenzuela, a 20-year-old dreamer who seeks to recover a lost treasure while also exploring the mystery of her family history.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
Though not a critical success, 2004’s National Treasure became a fan-favorite action film of the 2000s. In it, Cage debuted the character of Ben Gates, a historian who works to find the famed Templar Treasure before a team of mercenaries gets to it first. National Treasure was popular enough when it first came out that it led to the 2007 sequel National Treasure: Book of Secrets, with plans for a National Treasure 3 having languished in development hell for years. While audiences await new details on a potential threequel, the National Treasure: Edge of History premiere is nearing closer and fans of the franchise are getting exciting teases about what the future may hold.
In the absence of another Nicolas Cage National Treasure film, Wibberley teases what National Treasure: Edge of History would look like should Cage’s Ben Gates make an appearance in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. According to Wibberley, a meeting between Ben and Jess could be described as a “Tony Stark gets to visit Peter Parker” moment. He continued to describe how Olivera’s Jess would be star struck to see the real Ben Gates. Wibberley also said that he would love to bring “any of the other veterans” back into the universe should National Treasure: Edge of History be granted a second season. Check out the full quote from Wibberley below:
“[It would be like] Tony Stark gets to visit Peter Parker. That's basically how we saw the relationship if Ben Gates ever showed up. She's basically Peter Parker to him and would be like, 'Oh my God, it's Ben Gates! What do I do?' That's how our universe is. We would love to bring any of the other veterans if we get another season. We have roles for all of them."
This Marvel analogy gives good context for fans as to the status that Cage's Ben Gates holds in the National Treasure universe. While fans of the original National Treasure movie might be sad to see that there do not seem to be any concrete plans for a Ben appearance in this first season of National Treasure: Edge of History, it is comforting to know that he still fully exists within this updated National Treasure universe. Better yet, Ben is revered by leading character Jess, and could possibly have a mentor relationship with the character in future seasons, as Tony Stark did with Peter Parker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Thus, while Wibberley does not make any promises for a Ben Gates National Treasure reappearance, he is clearly open to the idea.
It will be interesting to see how the popularity of National Treasure: Edge of History plays out upon its release. Fans of the franchise hoping for future cameos and references to the beloved movies may leap to support the show and watch it in hopes of a future season. Furthermore, as National Treasure 3 sits in development, it will be interesting to see what the Disney+ series establishes within the franchise canon and how it might be followed up in the planned cinematic continuation of the story should National Treasure 3 happen. Only time will tell when National Treasure: Edge of History premieres on December 14.