Tuesday, September 1
The third installment in the XXX opus is on its way, and Columbia Pictures has hired Ericson Core to direct it. Titled XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, relative newcomer Core (Invincible) will need to be approved by Vin Diesel, though Core and Diesel have worked together previously on The Fast And the Furious where Core acted as cinematographer.
XXX director Rob Cohen was originally supposed to reunite with Diesel. When Cohen backed out to direct Medieval, he called the decision to leave "tough" and hoped the production would wait for him. Apparently, it hasn't.
The script for The Return of Xander Cage was written by Terminator Salvation writers John Brancato and Michael Ferris, and will follow Cage's return to the National Security Agency after an absence of eight years.
Posted 9/1/2009 by Ryan
Related: Ericson Core | Rob Cohen | Vin Diesel | Invincible | Michael Ferris | John Brancato | XXX
Tuesday, July 14
Mattel is on a roll this summer, with two blockbusters based on their action figures (the mega-hit Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and the upcoming G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra), and they're looking to keep their success going. Variety reports that the popular toymaker has teamed with Paramount Pictures and XXX producer Joe Roth to adapt Max Steel for the big screen. Considering the toy's back-story, basically an extreme sports enthusiast employed by a secret agency, the choice of Roth was obvious.
The action figure was first introduced in 1999 to modest domestic success but really caught on in Latin America, where Max Steel is the top-selling action figure, and is a market that Mattel is expressly looking to appease. Mattel VP Barry Waldo commented on this, saying:
A theatrical film plays a significant role to relaunch the franchise. But we have a strong Latin consumer we're going to keep happy while broadening the franchise for the rest of the world. We wouldn't do ourselves a favor if we turned a blind eye to it. That's the artistic challenge we've got.
Max Steel may seem like a tough sell for a movie, but it still has to be far easier than the adaptation of Mattel's View-Master that DreamWorks is considering.
Posted 7/14/2009 by Ryan
Related: Joe Roth | XXX | Max Steel
Thursday, June 11
Rob Cohen has decided not to reunite with Vin Diesel. The director and star were both set to return for XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, when Cohen jumped at the chance to direct Medieval, a movie that Cohen describes as "The Magnificent Seven in the Middle Ages."
Cohen and Diesel had also worked together on The Fast and the Furious and were supposed to reunite for XXX: State of the Union. However, both left that project. Cohen wasn't happy about leaving the third XXX either:
It was a tough decision about XXX. I talked to Vin over the weekend and said I hoped they would wait, but that if they find another director who's right for the sequel, I certainly wouldn't be angry. But I could not let something like this go.
Medieval looks to bring warriors together from disparate cultures and was written by Alex Litvak (Predators) and Michael Finch. McG will produce.
Posted 6/11/2009 by Ryan
Related: Rob Cohen | Vin Diesel | XXX: State of the Union | The Fast and the Furious | McG | XXX | Predators