The dogged cop and wily thief butt heads again in Christian Gudegast's follow-up to his 2018 heist thriller. Imagine the iconic diner sit-down scene between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in Michael Mann’s Heat stretched out to feature length and you’ll get some idea of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera.

Honor must be respected,” intones Jovanna (Evin Ahmad) at the start of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, which hits theaters Jan. 10. But as the old saying goes, there’s no such thing among thieves, and that proves all too true in this stellar sequel to 2018’s cult hit.

Butler's brusque, beady-eyed, scowling-hulk charisma has aged well. A quick-fire actor in a caveman's body, he has the ability to lift a piece of pulp so that it almost seems like a real movie.