As 2012 kicked off, Gina Carano kicked all kinds of ass in Steven Soderbergh's compelling spy thriller Haywire. The professional MMA fighter turned action heroine pummeled Channing Tatum, devastated Michael Fassbender, and annihilated Ewan McGregor with a fierce and efficient fighting style that's blows were so palpable they made critics crave more. Thankfully despite lackluster box office Carano's getting another shot at action stardom, fronting In the Blood, a thriller created just for Carano and her unique set of talents.
Carano will front the fight-fueled film playing a wife whose husband vanishes during their Caribbean vacation, spurring her into a furious and reckless revenge. We've been on board for this pic since it was first announced, and now THR has received some updates on the men who may share the screen and face off against Carano in her latest venture. Reportedly Stephen Lang (Avatar) and Danny Trejo have entered into talks to join the cast. Should they sign on, Lang will play Carano's hard-assed father that raised her to be a fearsome fighter; and Trejo will take on the role of a thug named Big Biz, who is destined for a sure-to-be epic showdown.
As much as I'm pumped to see Carano attack the big screen again, I'm carefully managing my expectations for In the Blood. First off, rather than Soderbergh, who applied a thought-provoking theme of gender politics to accompany the pulse-pounding brutality his film dealt out, this pic is penned by James Robert Johnston and Bennett Yellin, whose biggest shared credit to date is Joy Ride 2: Dead Ahead, and it's being helmed by John Stockwell, whose filmography boasts Blue Crush, Into the Blue, and the here-and-gone Halle Berry-vehicle Dark Tide.
Nonetheless, Carano is an action heroine unlike any I've ever seen before, so I'm rooting for her. Beyond that I'll bet the fight between her and Trejo, who has made a specialty out of playing incomparable badasses, will be worth the price of admission.
In the Blood kicks off production this November. Carano will appear next in Fast Six due out May 24th, 2013. Trejo has a perpetual tidal wave of projects on the way, but the most buzzed about is Machete Kills, which hits theaters on July 31st, 2013.
