Farhan Akhtar hints at a new era of Don 3; Ranveer Singh likely to replace SRK

Farhan Akhtar just dropped a major hint about Don 3. The filmmaker-actor recently sent a ripple of excitement through the industry and amongst fans with a cryptic announcement marked by a tantalizing '3'.

The symbolic '3' indicates a new addition to a much-loved franchise, though the exact details have not been made public just yet. Speculations are rife that Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani's Excel Entertainment is likely to announce their new film Don 3.

Several news reports have suggested that the third part of theDon franchise has been in the planning for a while and Akhtar will be donning the director's hat for this one.

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Is Ranveer replacing Shah Rukh Khan in Don 3?

Reports stated that the third installment of Don will have Ranveer Singh playing the titular character. Ranveer has worked with Farhan and Ritesh's production house in Dil Dhadakne Do and Gully Boy. A source close to the project had earlier stated, "Following Shah Rukh’s exit, the makers of Don 3 were looking for a popular and bankable name who could take the Don legacy ahead. And they have finally zeroed in on Ranveer. This association has borne fruit in the past and it will be no surprise if the collaboration proves to be another runaway hit. We’re waiting to see how fans of the Don franchise react to Ranveer’s casting considering Shah Rukh won over everyone with his charismatic portrayal of Don."

Reports also state that Ranveer has already shot the announcement video which will be released at end of this week. The promo is reportedly attached to Gadar 2 screening.

Why is SRK not part of Don 3?

According to a report in Pinkvilla, SRK decided to opt out of the project as he was not interested to play the same character for the third time around.

"Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani have had multiple detailed discussions with Shah Rukh Khan on Don 3. Before the pandemic, a couple of ideas were also discussed, which took the shape of a script through the pandemic. Meetings have happened recently too, but Shah Rukh is not too keen to get back as Don again at this point in time. He is willing to do commercial films that cater to a universal section of the audience, and Don certainly doesn’t fit the bracket of cinema that he is willing to do for the coming few years. He has conveyed his decision to the stakeholders at Excel."

Meanwhile, Ranveer has been earning rave reviews for his performance in the recently released Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. Directed by Karan Johar the film also co-stars Alia Bhatt, Jaya Bachchan, Dharmendra and Shabana Azmi among others.

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