'The Accountant 2' strays from the first, succeeds on its own

By Tyler Lenz

After an almost 10-year hiatus, Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal reunite for Gavin O’Connor’s The Accountant 2. Shifting away from the character study narrative of its predecessor, this one delivers a faster pace while packing way more punche(s) than the original. But does the second film shift too far away from what made the first film so enjoyable and become just another action-comedy?

Christian Wolf (Affleck) is back as the neurodivergent accountant with the skills of an expert assassin. Teaming with his estranged brother Braxton (Bernthal), Christian gets thrown into the underground world human trafficking. The brothers are tasked with bringing down an international crime ring while trying to navigate their own fractured relationship. The plot, like most action-comedy movies, isn’t revolutionary. But the film makes up for it with deeper multi-person character development. Without a traditional central villain to play against, the story relies on more intimate character-driven moments to keep the audience engaged. This, along with an even blend of action and comedy, brings a good balance throughout the entire film.

The Accountant 2 is a vastly different film than the 2016 original, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t succeed on its own merits. As far as sequels go, most films just lean into what makes the original so successful and then overdoes it. This one strays almost completely away and changes direction through a lighter lens while still giving you the emotional weight of two brothers just trying to coexist in the same room. In a world of endless sequels, this one is a refreshing progression from the first. Definitely worth a watch.