Jason Statham’s Rick Ford isn’t gone for good.

Spy director Paul Feig has hinted at a sequel to last year’s Melissa McCarthy comedy, but now he’s revealed Spy 2 is actually happening. The director told Empire that not only is McCarthy expected to return, but he also has big plans for Statham’s CIA agent. “I have a story for it,” Feig told Empire of the sequel, “and a funny idea that will kick it off that involves Statham.”

Fans wondering if Rick will get any smarter in the new movie shouldn’t hold their breath, though. “Susan Cooper is one of my favorite characters I’ve ever come up with,” Feig told Empire, “but Rick Ford is possibly the one I’ll take to the grave with me. Will he get any more self-aware in the sequel? No, god no. He’ll get less self-aware.”

In the first Spy, McCarthy’s Susan Cooper is a desk-bound CIA analyst who goes undercover for a mission involving arms dealers. Statham plays her idiot spy rival, Rick Ford. The film also starred Rose Byrne, Jude Law, and Bobby Cannavale, but no word yet on whether any will return for Spy 2.

The Spy movies might not end with a sequel, though. The director has talked about his love of franchises before and now he’s told Empire a Spy sequel could lead into one of his own. “It’s the first thing I did that I set up to be a possible franchise and Melissa is dying to do it,” he said. But before we get Feig’s Spy 2 we have his reboot of another franchise to look forward to when his Ghostbusters hits theaters July 15.

More From 96.9 Zoo FM