National Treasure 3 Is Real, but Only "Hollywood Real"

National Treasure 3 is moving again, and the man who confirmed it did so in a room full of fans before he told anyone in the press. Jon Turteltaub, who directed both Nicolas Cage treasure-hunting films, made the announcement during a live taping of the National Treasure Hunt podcast in Philadelphia — a city that happens to hold the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and a decent chunk of the first movie's plot.

His exact framing is the part worth reading twice. "It's happening. You're the first people I have said this out loud to," he told the crowd, according to TheWrap. Then he added the caveat that everyone skipped in the headlines: "It's finally real. Now, it's 'Hollywood real,' meaning things can happen." Translation — a script exists, Disney likes it, and absolutely nothing is locked.

Still, that's more forward motion than this franchise has had in nearly two decades. The last film came out in 2007. Anyone who saw Book of Secrets in a theater as a teenager is pushing 40 now. Together the two movies pulled in roughly $806 million worldwide, which makes them the biggest live-action hits of Cage's career, and Disney has spent 19 years failing to turn that into a third installment.

What Turteltaub Actually Told the Room

The blocker was never audience appetite. It was the screenplay. Turteltaub said the team finally has a script he likes, and that Disney's response was that it "sounds like a movie we can make" — studio language for approval without commitment. He also suggested the original ensemble is being pulled back in rather than replaced, which is a meaningful signal about the kind of sequel this is.

To whatever extent we can, everyone's back.

That "to whatever extent we can" is doing real work. The 2004 cast included Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha and Jon Voight; Helen Mirren and Ed Harris joined for the sequel. Nineteen years of schedules, salaries and career changes sit between then and now, and none of those actors have publicly signed anything.

The Catch Buried in "Hollywood Real"

Here's what a genuine greenlight looks like: a dated release slot, a signed director, closed deals with the leads, a production start and a budget. National Treasure 3 currently has none of those in public. TheWrap reported that representatives for both Cage and Disney had not confirmed involvement when the story ran, and Disney itself hasn't issued a word.

Turteltaub's own phrasing is the most honest reporting in the whole story. Scripts get approved and then rewritten. Movies get dated and then pulled. Treat this as the franchise passing a checkpoint it has repeatedly failed, not as a ticket on sale.

Why This Took Almost Two Decades

The sequel that kept dying on the page

A third film has been publicly "in development" on and off since roughly 2008. Cage has spent years telling interviewers he wanted to do it. The problem was always the same one Turteltaub just described solving — nobody cracked a story that justified another hunt without repeating the first two.

The Disney+ spinoff that lasted one season

Disney tried the cheaper route instead. National Treasure: Edge of History premiered on Disney+ in December 2022 with a new young cast and ended in February 2023 after ten episodes. It was canceled after one season. That failure arguably helped here: it proved the brand doesn't work without Cage.

Cage went and rebuilt his career elsewhere

While the sequel stalled, Cage spent the 2010s in direct-to-video territory, then clawed back critical respect with smaller films. He's now a more bankable name than he was in 2015, which changes the math on a nine-figure Disney adventure movie.

Putting $806 Million in Perspective

The first film took about $347 million worldwide in 2004. The sequel jumped to roughly $459 million in 2007 — a rare case of a follow-up outgrossing the original by a third. Those numbers land differently today. US tickets averaged a little over $6 back then and run past $11 now, so those grosses represent far more people in seats than the same figure would today.

The other data point Disney is surely watching: both films have quietly become streaming staples, picking up an audience of kids who weren't born when they came out. That's a rebuilt fanbase the studio didn't have to pay to create.

What to Watch For Next

Three concrete signals will tell you whether this is real-real. First, a date on Disney's official release calendar. Second, an announced screenwriter, which confirms the script is a finished asset and not a pitch. Third, deal news for Cage, Kruger or Bartha from the trades. Until at least two of those land, nothing is settled.

On timing, be patient. Even a project Disney actively wants needs a year of prep and a year of post. A 2028 release would be a fast turnaround from where this sits today, and a slip past that wouldn't be unusual. In the meantime, both films are on Disney+ — go rewatch the Declaration of Independence heist and see how well it holds up before you get your hopes too high.