Viktor Bout: The world's most famous arms dealer makes a comeback on screen

At one time, he inspired the makers of the film "Lord of War" and served as a role model for its protagonists. Now it is announced: The film is getting a sequel.

Frankfurt am Main - In December 2022, after 14 years in prison, a globally feared man was released. The reason for this was a prisoner exchange. When U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner was released from Russian custody, the U.S. released convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout, also known as the "Merchant of Death," in return. Michael Braun, the former head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), called him "one of the most dangerous men in the world" after his conviction in 2011, according to NBC News.

Indirect comeback in cinema, played by Nicolas Cage

Now Bout (also But) has been free again for almost half a year and is indirectly celebrating a cinematic comeback. His life inspired the creators of the film "Lord of War", which was released in 2005. In the blockbuster, Nicolas Cage plays the fictional arms dealer Yuri Orlov, who is recognizably based on Bout. According to Amnesty International, the film illustrates the "deadly effects of the uncontrolled global arms trade" and was explicitly supported by the NGO.

At the beginning of May, it became known that a sequel is planned. Nicholas Cage and Andrew Niccol, the director of the first part, are said to have teamed up to continue the story of Yuri Orlov under the title "Lords of War", according to media reports. Cage will once again appear as the "Merchant of Death", his antagonist this time will be his own film son Anton Orlov, played by Bill Skarsgard ("It").

In the film, the elder Orlov did not know about the existence of his elder son. He not only follows in his footsteps as an unscrupulous arms dealer, but even tries to surpass him. A bitter rivalry develops between father and son, in the course of which they even fight over the same woman. Production is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2023, as reported by the US portal Military.com.

Viktor Bout: once one of the most wanted arms dealers in the world

Viktor Bout, born in 1967, the real-life model for this family saga in the arms dealer milieu, was already able to watch the first film in freedom. He had only been in custody since 2008, after he was first arrested in Bangkok and then extradited to the United States. Bout had been lured to the Thai capital under the pretext of an arms deal with the terrorists of the Colombian FARC. He was considered one of the most wanted arms dealers in the world.

A 2007 book titled "Merchant of Death: Money, Guns, Planes and the Man Who Makes War Possible" claims that Bout transported weapons, ammunition and supplies for conflicts in Afghanistan, Angola, Liberia and the former Yugoslavia. According to Military.com, he is also said to have transported cargo for fighters in the Second Congo War, in the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon and for dictator Moammar Gaddafi during the Libyan civil war. He denies the rumor that he was spying for the Soviet military foreign intelligence service GRU.

Release of Viktor Bout was a "victory of Moscow over Washington"

In April 2012, the former Soviet military interpreter was sentenced by a New York jury to 25 years in prison and a $15 million fine for illegal arms trafficking. A few months earlier, in November 2011, he had been found guilty of conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens, kill U.S. government officials, and shoot down airplanes, Spiegel Online reported.

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Former DEA official Michael Braun said of Bout in 2011 that it was "reassuring" to know that he was in custody where he belonged. Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton called the prisoner exchange for Brittney Griner a "capitulation" to Russia. "This is a great victory of Moscow over Washington," he told the US broadcaster CBS. After his release, Viktor Bout will now also be able to see the second film inspired by him in freedom.