AICN reports and Sly confirms that Wesley Snipes (Blade, Demolition Man, Money Train) has joined the new lineup of Expendables 3. Jackie Chan also joined the cast a while back but a director hasn't been announced yet. Stallone recently teased that he was considering Mel Gibson (Braveheart) while previously John Woo (MI2, Hard Boiled, The Killer, Face/Off) had been linked as well. No word if Sly is still pursuing other actors such as Nicolas Cage, John Travolta, Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver and Gina Carano.
Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures are single-handily resurrecting the kaiju (giant/robot monster) genre with upcoming films Pacific Rim and the Godzilla reboot. The studio has strong ties with the Japanese market understanding the massive demand for these type of films. They also have tried to adapt films with Appian Way based on iconic anime/manga material with Akira (scrapped due Americanization) and Ninja Scroll. There is plenty of existing material involving kaiju and giant robots that could end up heading to Hollywood in the next couple of years.
One project within this genre that really deserves another shot is Neon Genesis Evangelion. Back in 2003, there was development on a live-action film which saw ADV Films hire Weta Workshop (Avatar, Lord of The Rings, King Kong, Rise/Dawn of The Apes, The Hobbit) to create a slew of concept art. The project was originally announced at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival with ADV looking to provide fifty percent of the estimated $100-120 million budget. Nothing seemed to happen even with hiring John Woo to pitch it to other producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Steven Spielberg. The company would eventually fold and the live-action film rights have been in dispute since 2011.
Other giant robot projects such as Robotech (Warner Bros.) and Gaiking (Valhalla Entertainment) have also been put into development in the last couple of months. It seems like it would be a smart move for other studios to get a hold of their own kaiju/giant robot flicks. Sony/Columbia, 20th Century Fox, Disney, Dreamworks, Wingnut and Universal should really consider trying to get a hold the film rights to Evangelion.
CASTING SUGGESTIONS
Olivia Thirlby (Dredd, Juno), Dane DeHaan (Lawless, Chronicle, Amazing Spider-Man 2) and Jane Levy (Evil Dead).
It had been rumored that legendary Hong Kong action director John Woo (MI2, Face-Off, The Killer, Hard Boiled, Red Cliff) could be in the mix for directing Expendables 3. Woo commented on the rumor to ExpendablesPremiere (via LatinoReview) and gives the impression he's willing to direct (or is already doing it?) if he's given the creative control he is with his Chinese productions. Having Woo direct is giant step-up from Simon West helming the last installment. This move would likely help producers wrangle Nicolas Cage and John Travolta who had been wanted for the second film. A Face-Off reunion could be something unexpected and a way to to get Cage interested previously working with Woo on two films. Not to mention John wanting the film to be set in China is following a recent Hollywood trend of setting blockbusters (Transformers 4, Iron Man 3, Skyfall) in the country. Jackie Chan has already confirmed his involvement which could give way to a Chinese-set Expendables 3.
"(Laughs) I read that. I am a big fan of all those guys and I will do it but I want less studio and producer interference. I want to shoot the movie the way I want. That’s the difference making a movie in China and Hollywood. In China, The Studio and producer allow flexibility to the director. One thing for sure is, I want it to take place in China. I also have a vision of this big fight between Jet Li and Van Damme but then they have killed him off."
Director John Woo made a name for himself with Hong Kong action epics like The Killer and Hard Boiled. The main theme of these films were the extensive brutal world of underground mobsters. His biggest successes in Hollywood was Face/Off and Mission: Impossible 2 while films like Windtalkers and Paycheck failed to find audiences. Woo had been focusing on another WWII film and released a two part Chinese epic titled Red Cliff. Deadline reports Woo is set to direct Day of The Beast which is a remake of the 1963 Japanese crime thriller Youth of The Beast from legendary director Seijun Suzuki. If successful, I wouldn't be shocked to see this become a franchise as Suzuki had a rather large amount of films set in the Yakuza genre.
A western outsider with a grim past as he becomes embroiled in a global turf war between a vicious new breed of Yakuza and old school Cold War Russian mobsters. It’s an action-packed saga of loyalty, revenge and redemption which erupts in the heart of Tokyo.
Seemingly the Japanese hit Outrage has sparked this new interest in the Yakuza sub-genre. Fox's comic book film The Wolverine is expected to explore samurai culture along with the underbelly of the criminal culture of the Yakuza. Universal Pictures has set Gavin O'Connor (Warrior) to write/direct a thriller Yakzua which will also explore this criminal world in Japan. Warner Bros. (distributed Outrage) has their own Yakuza film The Outsider with Swedish director Daniel Espinosa (Snabba Cash, Safe House) attached to direct with Michael Fassbender (Shame, The Counselor, Prometheus, X-Men First Class) wanted for the lead. The Outsider focuses on a WWII POW who is broken out by the Yakuza and is forced to work for them.
