Thanks to the success of Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, the 2000s saw a powerful resurgence in the superhero genre. Everyone from The Punisher and Hellboy to Batman, The Fantastic Four, and Superman got new movies…for better or worse. But after 2009 brought Zack Synder's controversial adaptation of Watchmen and the critically loathed atrocity X-Men Origins: Wolverine, industry watchers were speculating that superheroes were back on their way out. This was the cold climate that the R-rated independently financed Kick-Ass came into.
Many fans of superhero movies enjoyed this dark twists on the genre's convention. And while concerned parents wagged their fingers at the expletive-spouting Hit-Girl, she proved the part that made Chloe Moretz a star. Still, with mixed reviews and a modest box office total of $96 million, it was unclear if Kick-Ass and his colleagues would ride again. Mark Millar, who wrote the graphic novel on which the first film was based, often spoke up about sequel plans. But with him regularly announcing all kinds of curious claims, it has become difficult to take his word too seriously.
Still, here it is. Proof that at long last Kick-Ass 2 is coming to theaters. Up top we have a behind-the-scenes featurette—courtesy of MTV—that features Moretz, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who are reprising their roles as Mindy Macready/ Hit-Girl, Dave Lizewski/Kick-Ass, and Chris D'Amico/The Mother Fucker a.k.a Red Mist, respectively. Along with some help from former Scrubs star Donald Faison, who'll play Doctor Gravity, these cast mates share some of what the filmmakers have in store for Kick-Ass 2.
As you might expect, Hit-Girl has only gotten fiercer with age, whileKick-Ass has gotten impressively buffer! Plus, she's got a badass new bike, and he's got some new friends, like Jim Carrey as Colonel Stars and Stripes. For his part, The Mother Fucker, seeking revenge against Mindy and Dave for the death of his father, has created his own entourage, which boasts a massive madam called Mother Russia. See some of the new recruits in action below in a green band trailer that reveals the plot for Kick-Ass 2:
The rule of sequels is more, more, more, and this trailer addresses that expectation directly. The soundtrack hums, "You want more? Then I'll bring you more!" And so it does! There's more heroes, more villains, more stars. Plus cops cracking down, explosions, sex appeal, and the promise of more gore and jaw-dropping violence. What more do you want?
Kick-Ass 2 opens August 16th.
