With Transformers: Age of Extinction hitting theaters on Friday, it seems a good time to check in on another film franchise spawned from coveted '80s playthings. So what's the latest on G.I. Joe 3? From the sound of it, there are lots of shakeups behind the scenes, and some serious star power guaranteed.
Collider spoke with Lorenzo di Bonaventura recently, and the Transformers and G.I. Joe producer was eager to deliver updates on G.I. Joe 3. While the script is still in flux, di Bonaventura offered there's one thing fans can expect plenty of: The Rock.
Dwayne Johnson joined the G.I. Joe franchise in its second live-action offering, G.I. Joe: Retaliation , in which he portrayed Roadblock. In G.I. Joe 3, fans should expect Roadbloack to have an expanded role, which is no surprise as the second film cleared a pretty big path for him. Di Bonaventura told Collider:
"It’s interesting, it’s sort of an open possibility right now who could be in it outside of Dwayne [Johnson], he has to be in it. The last movie was really the set up, in a way, for Roadblock to take over. Dwayne came aboard a little late last time so we weren’t able to do everything I think we can do this time, and really get a story that services what the audience expects out of him, and also as an actor pushes him into areas that you wouldn’t normally explore in a big franchise movie perhaps. We have not talked about any other cast or anything, because we really need a story to be completely signed off by everybody."
G.I. Joe 3 was a go mere days after the release of G.I. Joe: Retaliation, thanks to monstrous box office totals coming in at $375 million worldwide. By the end of the summer of 2013, Paramount Pictures had hired Evan Daugherty, who penned Snow White and The Huntsman, to craft a screenplay for G.I. Joe 3. However, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura mentions a new writer is being brought in, though the amount of work (overhaul versus revisions) is unclear.
"We’re negotiating with a writer right now," di Bonaventura explains, "And once we close that deal—which should be any moment—then we’ll have a story locked down."
Also in the air is who might helm G.I. Joe 3. After G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra was slammed by critics, Stephen Sommers was switched out for Jon M. Chu. And while G.I. Joe: Retaliation didn't win much more critical love (though it should have) it did win more fans. Chu initially seemed down to return for G.I. Joe 3, but Jem and The Holograms intervened, making him unavailable. Now Paramount producers are weighing their options. They hope to have a director in place soon, so they can begin production by January or February of 2015.
While di Bonaventura is being shy about sharing too much, he does promise:
"One thing is for sure: there were some characters the fans were really shouting for us to put in, we’re gonna put in a few of the ones that they know that would be new to the movie audience, if they don’t know the mythology."
Who could these new additions be? Let us know in comments who you're hoping to see.
