Thalapathy Vijay's Leo now part of Lokesh Cinematic Universe; here's what we know

It's official! Thalapathy Vijay's upcoming film Leo is now a part of the Lokesh Cinematic Universe (LCU), a shared universe of action-thriller films created by writer-director Lokesh Kanagaraj.

Makers of the film confirmed the development in a post on the official X (formerly known as Twitter) account of the film. The makers shared a 47-second-long glimpse of the film and wrote, "Father of LCU arriving soon (sic)."

The development comes days after reports emerged that the film will likely feature two main characters from Lokesh Kanagaraj's previous film Vikram-- Suriya's Rolex and the special task force cop Amar played by Fahadh Faasil. 

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Central characters of Leo 

Thalapathy Vijay will be seen essaying a double role in the film as the chocolatier Parthiban 'Parthi' Das and his estranged brother Leo Das, a cafe owner who gained popularity among locals after a violent act.

Trisha Krishnan, on the other hand, will be seen playing the role of Parthiban's wife Sathya, Arjun Sarja and Sanjay Dutt as the gangster-duo Antony Das and Harold Das, and Gautham Vasudev Menon as a police officer. 

How much did Leo make in its pre-release? 

Thalapathy Vijay's upcoming film is estimated to have made a total of around Rs 422 crore just before its release. The film's satellite, digital and music rights have gone out for approximately Rs 220 crore. The film's Kerala rights have been sold for roughly Rs 15 crore whereas the theatrical rights for Telugu-speaking states have been quoted at around Rs 25 crore.

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The film's Kannada theatrical rights could have been sold at least Rs 12 crore. Leo's overseas theatrical rights have been sold at approximately Rs 50 crore, taking the total to around Rs 422 crore, according to an India Today report. 

Leo story, release date 

Directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj, a chocolatier Parthiban 'Parthi' Das who is targeted by gangsters Antony Das and Harold Das. The gangsters suspect Parthiban to be his estranged younger brother Leo Das.

Leo marks Sanjay Dutt's debut into the Tamil film industry. This film is also the second collaboration between Thalapathy Vijay and Lokesh Kanagaraj after the 2021 blockbuster film Master. 

It is also the second collaboration between Lokesh Kanagaraj and Anirudh Ravichander after Master. Leo will release in theatres worldwide on October 19 in 2D and IMAX formats in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.

Also Read: 'Leo' advance booking update: Thalapathy Vijay's film beats SRK's Jawan, sells 16 lakh tickets so far

Also Read: 'Leo' advance booking update: Thalapathy Vijay's film projected to open at Rs 130 cr worldwide, biggest for an Indian movie in 2023