News came earlier this year that Olivier Megaton had been announced as the director to the sequel of Luc Besson-written and -produced 2008 success, Taken. ComingSoon.net now have it that production on the film will be starting slightly earlier than planned, with filming scheduled to begin this October.
Fans of the original film might question whether a sequel is really warranted, but if it means we get to see Liam Neeson heading up another brilliant action thriller, then I’m all for it.
The original film was made on a budget of less than $30m., and made almost ten times as much at the box office, and was by all accounts a terrific film. The first film was directed by Pierre Model, who’d worked with Besson on a number of projects prior to and since Taken, but Megaton will be replacing him behind the lens, who has also worked with Besson before on Transporter 3 and, most recently, the upcoming Colombiana.
The plot for this sequel is still being kept under wraps, but it should nonetheless be something to look forward to. Neeson, Maggie Grace, and Famke Janssen are all set to reprise their roles, which is good news on the casting front. I’m a big fan of Besson’s work, old and new, and am always interested in all his projects, whether he’s writing, directing, or producing. The as-yet-untitled sequel will see Besson writing with frequent collaborator Robert Mark Kamen, with whom he’s worked on The Fifth Element, all three of The Transporter films, and Colombiana.
Since Besson, Kamen, and Megaton have all worked together on more than one film before, we can expect an experienced filmmaking team working towards producing a brilliant film together in Taken 2, which is definitely good news in my books. No word yet on a potential release date, but with filming now starting in October, we’ll hopefully be getting this at the tail-end of next year or early in 2013. More news as and when we get it.
