Actor Vijay announced the launch of his political party, Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam, on Friday, February 2. Addressed fondly as 'Thalapathy' by his fans everywhere, the Tamil superstar also informed that his party will make its electoral debut in the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, while also revealing that he will complete all his duties on his upcoming film before entering the political arena in a full-fledged manner. Ever since Vijay's announcement, there has been a big buzz on social media in regard to his future in cinema after his ongoing film, The Greatest of All Time, which will see him in dual roles as father and son under Venkat Prabhu's direction.
Since the blockbuster success of Leo (2023), a lot has been debated on whether Vijay and filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj will reunite once again since the film ended with being established to be a part of the Lokesh Cinematic Universe (LCU). The wheels of the LCU, as known already, was set in motion in Karthi's Kaithi (2019), whose character was then referenced in 'Ulaganayagan' Kamal Haasan's Vikram (2022). Although Kamal Haasan didn't appear in physical form in Leo, his telephonic conversation with Vijay in the final moments of the film did spike the interest of Tamil cinema fans with the hopes of witnessing them all together on the same screen. Addressing the possibilities of Leo 2, Lokesh Kanagaraj said at the Leo success meet last year that it all depends on Vijay giving his nod to appearing in the sequel and it now remains to be be seen if that will become a reality.
With the big debate about Thalapathy 69 being Leo 2 doing the rounds on social media, there is also a buzz that Vijay could team up with other leading names in Tamil cinema among whom include a few filmmakers he has worked with before and others with whom he hasn't yet collaborated. Below is the list of 6 leading directors whom Tamil cinema fans want to see Vijay join hands with for Thalapathy 69:
ATLEE
A combo that has struck gold at the box office each time they have come together, Vijay and Atlee's association has spelled nothing else than magic and a section of fans have been expressing their interest to see their team-up for the fourth time after blockbusters Theri (2016), Mersal (2017), and Bigil (2019). Considering Atlee has often expressed himself to be a fan of Vijay first, it will seem that he would be the perfect choice to direct the Tamil superstar in his final big-screen performance in Thalapathy 69.
NELSON DILIPKUMAR
Although their first-time collaboration in Beast (2022) ended up receiving a mixed reaction from audiences, Vijay and Nelson Dilipkumar's combo delivered the results at the box office. Nelson, who came out with a thumping box office success with Jailer (2023) starring 'Superstar' Rajinikanth, is also a fan favorite to direct Thalapathy 69, and it now needs to be seen what Vijay's plans are next.
SHANKAR
A towering giant in Tamil cinema, filmmaker Shankar, who has directed some of the biggest record-breaking box office hits, continues to lead the way in the film fraternity even today. Having previously worked with Vijay in Nanban (2012), it will seem like a dream reunion project for Shankar with the leading Tamil star, and time will tell whether this partnership will indeed happen again.
VETRI MAARAN
A blockbuster collaboration that has been long-awaited by Tamil audiences and it now needs to be seen whether Vijay and National Award-winning director Vetri Maaran will work together. Considering Vetri Maaran revealed a few years back that such a team-up will indeed happen, it is now a waiting game for fans of the filmmaker and 'Thalapathy' Vijay.
KARTHIK SUBBARAJ
Having directed box officer money-spinners like Petta (2019) and more recently, Jigarthanda DoubleX (2023), there has been a big talk about filmmaker Karthik Subbaraj associating with Vijay for a film for the first time. There have been rumblings on social media about the possibility of such a team up and it will no doubt turn out to be an exciting combo if such a partnership gets set on the paper.
H. VINOTH
There has also been a lot of chatter on social media about a collaboration between director H. Vinoth and Vijay for quite some time now. Considering he has experience working with a superstar like Ajith Kumar in films Nerkonda Paarvai (2019), Valimai (2022), and Thunivu (2023), and delivering back-to-back commercial successes on each occasion, it will seem the right choice for Vijay to consider joining hands with H. Vinoth. It would also be a bold and interesting move for Vijay to contemplate and go with H. Vinoth for the much-talked-about Thalapathy 69 since they haven't worked before.
All said and done, Vijay's fans everywhere will now have to wait and watch what the superstar is planning for his swan-song role in Thalapathy 69.
