The Old Guard 2 (2025) Netflix Review – Worth Watching?

The Old Guard 2 storms back onto Netflix with a promise of bigger battles, deeper scars, and the same rag‑tag band of immortals we first met in 2020. I hit “play” hoping for another dose of slick swordplay and soulful musings on eternity—and walked away feeling mixed, landing on a personal rating of 3 out of 5 stars. Below is the full breakdown so you can decide whether this two‑hour excursion is worth your own precious (and mortal) time.

Why Fans Waited for The Old Guard 2

When the original film dropped during the height of pandemic streaming, Charlize Theron’s battle‑weary warrior Andy and her eternal crew scratched a very specific itch: high‑concept comic‑book action that still managed to feel human. The sequel picks up right where that climactic cliff dive left us—Andy reeling from the loss of her immortality and the group still nursing the emotional fallout from Booker’s betrayal. That dangling thread alone was enough to keep fans in the United States, Australia, Canada, the U.K., Germany, and Switzerland refreshing Netflix for news.

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A Fresh Director, Familiar Immortals

Gina Prince‑Bythewood stepped aside for Victoria Mahoney, whose résumé leans heavily on prestige television. The shift is noticeable: Mahoney keeps episodes of tension humming but sometimes struggles to stitch them into a feature‑length whole. Still, Theron commands every frame, embodying Andy’s new fragility without losing the granite resolve we loved. Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts) spends much of the runtime clawing his way back into the team’s good graces, and their shared sequence of raw forgiveness is the emotional high point—one that might even draw a tear if you’re the sentimental type.

New Faces and Old Wounds

Sequels live or die on fresh blood, and The Old Guard 2 brings three intriguing recruits:

• Uma Thurman skulks through the first half almost mute, a voyeuristic phantom whose sudden katana reveal knowingly nods to Kill Bill. When she finally speaks, it’s more style than substance, making her feel like an Easter egg instead of a fully realized threat.
• Henry Golding arrives with the cool confidence he showed in Snake Eyes, dishing out intel and spinning a few sharp kicks—but the script leaves him scrambling for relevance once the final act turns chaotic.
• Veronica Ngo (Quynh) resurfaces from her watery tomb seeking Andy, but not for hugs. Her arc—betrayal curdling into revenge—feels painfully familiar, though Ngo sells the heartbreak and fury with quiet eloquence

Action That Cuts Both Ways

On paper, Mahoney unleashes enough violence to satisfy any late‑night adrenaline junkie: bullet holes bloom, bones crunch, and blades slice with abandon. In practice, over‑edited quick cuts blur the choreography you came to see. Only a handful of fights step back far enough to showcase centuries‑honed skill; most smear into shaky blurs and CG blood spurts that look faker than ever. One early body‑horror gag lands with grisly gusto, but it’s the exception that proves the rule.

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A Story We’ve Seen Too Many Time

he central plot driving The Old Guard 2 feels painfully familiar. It hinges on the well-worn trope of a scorned former ally seeking revenge for perceived injustices. Sound generic? It often plays out that way. Quynh’s (Ngo) entire arc, in particular, is singled out as a major weakness. Despite Ngo’s capable performance conveying complex emotions like contempt, loss, and even lingering love, her character’s motivation and journey are described as utterly predictable, “black” (lacking nuance), and “overused.” This lack of originality in a core storyline significantly drags down the film’s overall impact.

Does The Old Guard 2 Set Up a Part 3?

Frustratingly, yes—and not in the neat “post‑credits tease” way the first film managed. The story stops rather than ends, leaving multiple threads dangling like frayed rope: Andy’s mortality, Quynh’s vendetta, and the fate of a certain game‑changing serum all hang in limbo. As of July 2025, Netflix has yet to green‑light a third chapter, so viewers are asked to invest in half a tale with no guaranteed payoff. That narrative gamble could alienate even die‑hard fans.

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Final Verdict on The Old Guard 2

locking in at just under two hours, The Old Guard 2 offers fleeting sparks of the first film’s magic—Theron’s magnetic gravitas, Schoenaerts’ soulful remorse, a couple of throat‑catching sword clashes. But choppy editing, undercooked newcomers, and an abrupt non‑ending dull the blade. If you’re craving immortal antics, you may still find value, especially on a Friday night when popcorn and low stakes are on the menu. Just temper expectations: this sequel is more placeholder than paradigm shift. My critic’s heart lands at 3/5 stars, acknowledging both the cast’s commitment and the sequel’s many missed swings.

Whether Netflix grants us a trilogy capper remains to be seen, but as it stands, The Old Guard 2 feels like half a saga in search of its final act—and that’s a hard pill to swallow for viewers from Los Angeles to London, Sydney to Zürich. If you do press play, come for the camaraderie, stay for the occasional flash of blade, but keep your hopes as mortal as the hero you once knew.

The Old Guard 2—worth a watch, perhaps, but not quite the legend it longs to be.