Don 3 - Farhan Akhtar on replacing Shah Rukh Khan with 'next-gen actor' Ranveer Singh

The makers of Don 3 have received mixed responses from fans after they announced that Ranveer Singh would be replacing Shah Rukh Khan in the Don franchise’s third installment. While Ranveer's fans are excited to see their favourite actor embody Don, not everyone is happy about Shah Rukh being replaced. Farhan has finally spoken about casting Ranveer in SRK's role. The filmmaker feels that Ranveer’s performance has been untapped and that Don 3 will be a nice challenge for him.

Farhan Akhtar on Don 3

Speaking to YouTuber Raj Shamani on his podcast, Farhan said that he had not thought about doing a trilogy with Shah Rukh and that the script of Don 3 required a next-generation actor, someone like Ranveer.

Speaking about Ranveer, Farhan said that the actor is a charming, mischievous and energetic person who has never performed a character like this. Farhan added that he believes Ranveer’s performance is still untapped and he thinks that it will be a challenge for him to be able to do Don 3.

He said, "Don requires a very different performance from him. There is a certain holding inside him that is needed, which I don't think he (Ranveer) has done. So I think it is a nice challenge for him to be able to do it."

Farhan added that till now, Ranveer has only played loud characters, except in Lootera. He added that those characters were written based on his personality and were quite external.

Farhan Akhtar on collaborating with Shah Rukh Khan

Speaking about working with Shah Rukh again, Farhan said that both of them had creative differences with Don 3 and revealed that he tried to create a trilogy, exchanged ideas, and penned some content but couldn't reach the same point. So, both of them mutually decided to move on.

According to reports, Farhan will start filming for Don 3 in 2025. Farhan told Pinkvilla, "We start filming Don 3 next year. I am really looking forward to it."