The real reason why Salman Khan and Karan Johar’s The Bull was abandoned despite a big budget .

In 2023, Salman Khan was set to reunite with Dharma Productions for an army-based action thriller, The Bull. The action-packed thriller had a mahurat ceremony in December 2023 but never took off due to multiple issues, ranging from budgetary concerns to Salman Khan’s suggestions and more. As Sikandar failed to do the trick at the box office, an insider has shared the real reason for The Bull to be put on the backburner.

The insider told us, “Salman Khan had liked the idea of Bull, as the film was to tell a story of a senior paramilitary officer and his junior. The film had lots of action and was set against the backdrop of the India – Maldives conflict. While everything was in place, some recommendations from Salman Khan forced Vishuvardhan to rethink the decision to make The Bull.”

We asked our insider to share Salman’s recommendations, and the insider shared, “Salman Khan wanted Vishnuvardhan and Karan Johar to launch Shera’s son Abir aka Tiger with The Bull. However, Karan and Vishnu, on the other hand, were looking for a better casting by roping in an actor like Sidharth Malhotra for the part of junior paramilitary officer, and given the success of Shershaah, it was a no-brainer. Salman tried to convince Karan and Vishnu on the launch, but the duo felt that launching a new face was not the option for a character as important as the one in discussion.”

The source informed us that Bull was supposed to be a Rs. 250 crore magnum opus, excluding Salman Khan’s acting fees, and the team was in no mood to compromise on the production front. On realising that the casting changes could impact the story telling of the film, they decided to put a full stop with a promise of teaming up on something better.