We had earlier reported that the shoot of Vijay's upcoming film with director Vamshi Paidipally was currently underway. Tentatively titled Thalapathy 66, the film stars Rashmika Mandanna opposite Vijay.

While the makers — Dil Raju's Sri Venkateswara Creations — initially planned to release the film this Deepavali, they officially announced Pongal 2023 to be the release date for the Vijay-starrer. 

It was a day filled with Thalapathy 66 updates as it was announced that veteran actors Prabhu, Sarath Kumar and Prakash Raj have also joined the cast of the film.

While Prakash Raj and Prabhu have worked on multiple projects with Vijay, Thalapathy 66 marks the first time Vijay and Sarath Kumar are paired together. It is also reported that Shaam, who played an uncredited role in Vijay's Kushi, was also part of the Tamil-Telugu bilingual. Thalapathy 66 is jointly scripted by Vamshi, Hari, and Ashishor Solomon. Lyricist Vivek is penning the dialogues and additional screenplay.

With cinematography by Kharthik Palani, editing by KL Praveen, Thalapathy 66 will mark the first time Thaman is composing the music for a Vijay film.

While the makers were planning to release the film this Deepavali, they officially announced their plans to release the project on Pongal 2023.