In a surprising revelation, filmmaker and actor Prithviraj Sukumaran has shared that legendary actor Mohanlal did not charge any fee for his role in the upcoming film L2: Empuraan, making it possible for the ambitious project to take off.
Speaking to Pinkvilla, Prithviraj said, “Mohanlal has not taken a single rupee to do Empuraan, which is why this film could be made. This isn’t a situation where we’re spending ₹100 crore on production and ₹80 crore on remunerations, leaving just ₹20 crore for the actual film. Everyone — technicians, actors — knew we were attempting something big and contributed accordingly. Even the foreign actors who came on board did it as a favor.”
He also addressed recent rumors about Fahadh Faasil making a surprise appearance in the film, humorously denying them.
“Fahadh Faasil, Tom Cruise, Robert De Niro… No, Fahadh is not in the film, neither is Tom Cruise,” he laughed. “When we began casting for Lucifer 2, we had a wishlist with some big names from Hollywood, the UK, and China. To my surprise, 9 out of 10 people I reached out to were open to collaborating. But once agents stepped in, it became about who could secure the highest fee. I had to be clear—we had a set budget, and I wanted every rupee to go into making the film.”
L2: Empuraan, starring Mohanlal in the lead, is set for release on March 27. The film was shot across multiple international locations including Turkey, France, London, Yemen, Senegal, Iraq, and China, adding to its grand scale.
The ensemble cast also features Tovino Thomas, Abhimanyu Singh, Indrajith Sukumaran, and Manju Warrier, among others.
The film will release in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Hindi.
