Netflix's 2-Part Assassin Thriller Quietly Fixed What John Wick Couldn't

Bob Odenkirk was an unusual choice to lead an action franchise, but Nobody's 2021 success proved he could shoot, stab, and mangle bad guys with the best of them. Nobody 2 underperformed at the box office compared with the first film, yet delivered arguably more — and gorier — mayhem, with Sharon Stone chewing up and spitting out scenery.

Compared with many effects-heavy, 120-minute-plus action epics, the Nobody films are modest affairs focused on what implement can be used for maximum lethality, often in ironic suburban settings. Where the John Wick series expanded into sprawling world-building and elaborate conspiracies, Nobody kept things simple and episodic.

Hutch Mansell’s first film echoes the initial Wick setup, but the second sends him on an unconnected criminal detour after a quiet attempt at a family vacation. That episodic approach lets the series repeatedly thrust its hero into danger without accumulating ponderous lore.

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