Yes, a body double was used for Mohanlal in Jailer 2, but only for one or two close-ups of hands and legs in the airport sequence near the climax. His stand-in, Jobi Kodakara, says his face never appears on screen. Action director Chethan D'Souza says Mohanlal shot the climax car scene himself. As of 22 October 2026, Sun Pictures and director Nelson Dilipkumar have made no official statement about the body double or about the cuts to Mohanlal's role.
The film released on 15 October. Since then the story has moved from "Mohanlal's scenes were cut" to "a body double replaced him" and on to a partial clarification. Below we lay out what happened in order, separate rumour from confirmed fact, and cover the two follow-up questions people keep asking: how much the film has made and when it will stream.
Jailer 2 at a glance
- Release date: 15 October 2026
- Director: Nelson Dilipkumar | Producer: Sun Pictures | Music: Anirudh
- Runtime: 165 minutes
- Lead: Rajinikanth as Muthuvel Pandian
- Mohanlal's role: A cameo as Mathew, the same Dubai-based crime boss he played in Jailer (2023)
- Other cameos: Shiva Rajkumar (Narasimha), Hrithik Roshan (Roddy), Jackie Shroff, Vijay Sethupathi, Vinayakan
- Reported budget: ₹250–350 crore (per Wikipedia)
If you read our pre-release breakdown of the Jailer 2 trailer, you may remember a Mohanlal moment from it. That moment ended up at the centre of the post-release complaints.
Mohanlal body double in Jailer 2: what happened, day by day
15 October: the costume designer goes public
On release day, Mohanlal's costume designer Jishad Shamsudeen posted on Instagram that "three of Mohanlal Sir's distinct looks were cut entirely." He added that a scene shown in the trailer had been trimmed, and wrote: "if there is a sequel, I will not be a part of it." Fans also noticed that Mohanlal's introduction scene was missing. The Mohanlal Fans Association responded publicly, and Onmanorama, The Week, Deccan Chronicle and Kerala Kaumudi all covered the backlash that day.
Around 15–20 October: the stand-in's photos spark rumours
Jobi (Joby) Kodakara is a mimicry artist and Mohanlal's stand-in. Around release day he posted behind-the-scenes photos of himself in Mathew's costume. Coming right after the cuts complaint, the photos led to rumours that a body double had replaced Mohanlal in the climax.
Kodakara clarifies: "hands and legs only"
In an interview with the YouTube channel Jango Space, Kodakara said only one or two of his shots survived the final cut. Both are close-ups of hands and legs, shifting gears and pressing the accelerator, in the airport sequence near the climax. He said his face is never shown and denied replacing Mohanlal. His guess was that the makers used him because of scheduling or time pressure. He also said posting the photos had been a mistake.
Around 21 October: the action director weighs in
A fan asked action director Chethan D'Souza on social media who performed the climax car scene. His reply was short: "It's him." That means Mohanlal did it himself. Gulf News reported the exchange on 21 October.
22 October: still no word from the makers
Neither Sun Pictures nor Nelson has commented on the deleted looks, the trimmed trailer scene or the body double.
Rumour vs confirmed: the body double claims checked
| Claim | Status | What we know |
|---|---|---|
| A body double replaced Mohanlal in the climax | Not supported | Kodakara says only hand and leg close-ups are his. D'Souza says Mohanlal did the climax car scene. |
| A stand-in appears in the film | Confirmed (by the stand-in) | One or two insert shots in the airport sequence, face not shown. |
| Three of Mohanlal's looks were removed | Claimed by the costume designer | Jishad Shamsudeen said so publicly. The makers haven't responded. |
| His screen time fell from "over 5 minutes to under 1 minute" | Unverified | This figure comes from Wikipedia, whose article carries a warning about possibly AI-generated, unverified content. Onmanorama gives no figure. |
| Mathew is a new character | False | It's the same Dubai-based crime boss from Jailer (2023). |
| Mohanlal is the only cameo that was cut | False | Fans have also complained about cuts to Shiva Rajkumar's role, and scenes with Vijay Sethupathi and Santhanam were reportedly deleted. |
Wikipedia's page also says the climax "used a body double." That conflicts with D'Souza's statement, so we're going with the action director's first-hand account.
Who is Jobi Kodakara?
Jobi Kodakara is a mimicry artist who works as Mohanlal's stand-in. A stand-in fills in for an actor during lighting set-ups and, sometimes, for insert shots where the face isn't visible, such as hands on a steering wheel or feet on a pedal. Big multi-star films with tight schedules use this routinely. The controversy grew because his photos appeared on release day, just as fans were already angry about the cuts. That made routine insert shots look like a replacement.
Why were Mohanlal's scenes cut?
No official reason has been given. Here's what we can say:
- The film already runs 165 minutes and carries at least five star cameos, so the edit was under pressure.
- Mohanlal wasn't the only one affected. Fans have flagged trims to other cameos as well.
- Kodakara's own guess about why he was used, scheduling and time limits, hints at a tight shoot. That's his speculation, though, not a statement from the production.
Until Sun Pictures or Nelson comments, treat any precise screen-time figure, and any claim about the reason for the cuts, as unconfirmed.
Jailer 2 box office collection so far
Whatever fans think of the cameo cuts, ஜெயிலர் 2 (Jailer 2, as Tamil audiences search for it) is a huge commercial hit. It crossed the ₹300 crore India net mark within its first week.
| Figure | Amount | Source and timing |
|---|---|---|
| Day 7 (Tue, 21 Oct) India net | ₹28.15 crore | Sacnilk, Day 7 update |
| Total India net after 7 days | ₹317.20 crore | Sacnilk, Day 7 update |
| Worldwide gross after 7 days | ₹582.45 crore | Sacnilk, Day 7 update |
| Earlier same-day estimate, India net | ₹301–309 crore | Early 21 Oct reports (ETV Bharat, The Week) |
| Earlier same-day estimate, worldwide | ₹542 crore | Zee Business, 21 Oct |
Why the numbers differ: early-day reports use partial data, and trackers revise their figures as more show reports arrive. Sacnilk's later update is the most complete figure available as of 22 October. We haven't included separate Day 1–6 rows because the daily breakdowns going around haven't been consistently verified across sources. We'll add them once they settle.
One thing that limited the numbers: the Hindi version was largely missing from the PVR INOX and Cinepolis multiplex chains in North India, because of a dispute over the theatre-to-OTT window (explained below). So the Hindi belt contributed less than it might have.
Jailer 2 OTT release platform and expected date
No official OTT date or platform has been announced. Here's what's been reported:
- Platform: Amazon Prime Video is widely reported to hold the digital rights. Wikipedia puts the deal at about ₹160 crore, but that figure is unverified.
- Window: The makers are reportedly considering a four-week gap between theatres and streaming. Counting from 15 October, that puts a possible streaming date around 12 November 2026. That's our estimate, not an announcement. NDTV has only said "November."
- The multiplex dispute: PVR INOX and Cinepolis want an eight-week window before a film streams. The shorter window is the main reason the Hindi version was largely kept out of those chains.
- Languages: Big Tamil releases usually stream in Tamil plus dubbed Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi versions. Wait for the official listing to confirm which ones.
We'll add Jailer 2 to our weekly new OTT releases this week list as soon as a date is confirmed. Be wary of sites claiming an exact date before then.
Why is Anupama Parameswaran trending with Mohanlal?
Many people searching about Mohanlal this week are also searching for അനുപമ പരമേശ്വരന് (Anupama Parameswaran). She is not in Jailer 2. The connection is a coincidence of timing. Around 21 October she told a YouTube channel that Mohanlal is her celebrity crush "despite the age gap." Manorama Online, Manorama News and Metro Vaartha picked it up, and it trended alongside the Jailer 2 news. Her own Telugu film, Crazy Kalyanam, released on 16 October, one day after Jailer 2.
What to watch for next
- A statement from Sun Pictures or Nelson about the deleted looks and cameo trims. That's the only thing that would settle the screen-time question.
- Deleted scenes: Producers sometimes release cut footage on YouTube or add it to the streaming version. Nothing has been announced, but fan demand for Mohanlal's missing scenes is clearly there.
- The OTT announcement, most likely early-to-mid November if the four-week window holds.
- Second-weekend box office, which will show whether the film can approach the ₹400 crore India net mark.
For more on fast-moving entertainment and trending stories, including the Ramayana trailer 2 release and bookings, see the KyunTrend homepage.