El Especialista (2011) was not a huge hit, so the sequel was financed independently. Jason Statham has said that after doing supporting roles in Los indestructibles 3 (2014), Rápidos y furiosos 7 (2015), and Spy: una espía despistada (2015), he wanted to give his fans a starring performance again in the genre that they have come to expect from him.
Jason Statham finds great reward in doing his own stunts. He said: "It's something I've done ever since my first action movie, El transportador (2002), when I took the reins and got my hands dirty in the action movie world. I had a ton of experience as a kid doing many different sorts of martial arts and gymnastics and sports, and that can really give you an advantage in doing these kinds of sequences."
With an international take of over $125 million, this sequel actually did better than its predecessor.
Jason Statham said Thailand was "a tremendous place to go work. The nicest people you'll ever get to work with. We spent most of our time there, and the warmth and generosity made for a terrific time, and it gave us such a beautiful backdrop."
The name of the high-security Malaysian island prison in Malaysia was "Penjara Kaedah". Scenes here were filmed at an abandoned real-life jail in Thailand called the Chanthabur Prison.