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Disney Greenlights National Treasure 3 Script, Turteltaub Announces

8/22/2026

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Summary

Turteltaub Announces Third Treasure

Director Jon Turteltaub announced a third National Treasure film is in development.
He made the announcement during a live National Treasure Hunt podcast taping in Philadelphia.
Nicolas Cage is expected to reprise his role as historian Ben Gates.
Disney approved a script that Turteltaub calls movie-ready.
The first two films earned $347 million and $459 million worldwide, totaling over $800 million.

Summary

Elliott Rewrites

Ted Elliott was hired in 2024 to rework Chris Bremner’s draft, receiving story credit.
Disney’s $8.3 billion Marvel and Lucasfilm purchases redirected budgets away from mid-2000s franchises like National Treasure.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced Disney to pause film plans and launch a Disney+ series instead.
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer said a solid script would convince Nicolas Cage to reprise Ben Gates.

History

Historical Context

After Disney announced on August 31 2009 that it would buy Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion, the company reshaped its strategy around shared-universe blockbusters, exemplified by the MCU’s $30 billion worldwide take. Leveraging that model, Disney now revives the National Treasure series with Jon Turteltaub and Nicolas Cage, signaling a broader push to monetize legacy franchises.

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Turteltaub Announces Third Treasure

Director Jon Turteltaub announced a third National Treasure film is in development.
He made the announcement during a live National Treasure Hunt podcast taping in Philadelphia.
Nicolas Cage is expected to reprise his role as historian Ben Gates.
Disney approved a script that Turteltaub calls movie-ready.
The first two films earned $347 million and $459 million worldwide, totaling over $800 million.

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