One of the biggest surprises of the year has been Paramount’s decision to push back G.I. Joe: Retaliation.
For those wary of the sequel, it should be noted upfront that the decision wasn’t made because the film itself isn’t good – they simply wanted to do some reshoots to feature more Channing Tatum (who is increasingly becoming a very bankable name in Hollywood), and to allow for a proper 3D conversion, rather than a rushed job.
With the film’s spring release now on the horizon, the studio will be gearing up the marketing campaign once more, and I can’t wait to see how they reboot it in the coming months. It looks to be starting off in earnest tonight, with a new international trailer landing online.
“A follow-up to the 2009 release of G.I. JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA, which grossed over $300M worldwide, Paramount Pictures, MGM and Skydance Productions, in association with HASBRO and di Bonaventura Pictures, commences production on G.I. JOE: RETALIATION. In this sequel, the G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy Cobra; they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence.”
Channing Tatum, Ray Park, and Lee Byung-hun reprise their roles from the first film, with Dwayne (“The Rock”) Johnson, Adrianne Palicki, Elodie Yung, Ray Stevenson, RZA, D.J. Cotrona, Walton Goggins, Jonathan Pryce, and none other than Mr. Bruce Willis himself completing the cast nicely.
Jon M. Chu is behind the camera, directing from a script penned by the great co-writers, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (Zombieland).
One of the main benefits we had this summer of the decision to push the film back was Universal’s ability to re-position their release for Ted, bringing it forward to open relatively unchallenged in the slot left open by the blockbuster’s exit, and it did wonders for Seth MacFarlane’s brilliant feature directorial debut.
G.I. Joe: Retaliation will be hitting theatres in 3D on 27th March, 2013 here in the UK, before heading across the Atlantic two days later for a 29th March release. It looks like it should be a lot of fun, and it’s definitely one blockbuster I’m looking forward to next year.
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