Here’s some rather welcome news at 23.40 on a Tuesday evening! While I’m sitting here waiting for the new Twilight trailer to drop, EW have just posted the news that Chuck Norris and Jean Claude van Damme have been confirmed for The Expendables 2 with Nicolas Cage on the wish-list. This news follows that of Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger are on board too.

In an interview with Sylvester Stallone who wrote, directed and starred in the original movie, he broke the news that Van Damme and Norris are confirmed and thinks that Cage will be appearing but it sounds like he wants to get a few more involved too including Michael Biehn and Michael Pare and maybe even John Travolta making it a nice Face Off reunion with Cage:

“We’ll have a big showdown between me and Van Damme, which has been anticipated for a long time, so it should be a good one”

“We’ve got Chuck Norris and I think Nic Cage. We’re trying to work out different scenarios. I like using people that had a moment and then maybe have fallen on some hard times and give them another shot. So we’re always looking for actors like Michael Biehn and Michael Pare. I like those kinds of guys. Someone did it for me and I like to see if I can do it for them. We also need some new blood in there, a Navy Seal-type, because with the Expendables none of them have 20-20 vision anymore. They need some help, man.”

I was desperate for Norris and Van Damme to appear to appear in the original 2009 movie but it looks like we had to wait a couple of years longer to see them. The addition of Cage could be cool and all I need to do now is work out how I can get on set! Now all we need is for Steven Seagal and Jackie Chan to sign on the dotted line and the line up is complete! Then again, we’ll need some more people for The Expendables 3 no doubt!

The movie is expected to be released August 2012 and shooting starts at the end of this month.