Looks like two former Planet Hollywood owners will be sharing the big screen again, but this time the word “Expendables” won’t be involved. I just received a press release from Summit saying that Arnold Schwarzenegger has joined Sylvester Stallone in The Tomb, to be directed by Swedish filmmaker Mikael Hafstrom (1408).

Written by Miles Chapman for the screen, with a rewrite by Jason Keller, THE TOMB follows Ray Breslin (Stallone) who is the world’s foremost authority on structural security. He’s analyzed every high security prison and has gained a vast array of survival skills. But all Ray’s ingenuity and knowledge are about to be put to work in the most challenging test he’s ever faced: escaping from the master prison of his own design.

Schwarzenegger will play an inmate named Church (not to be confused with Bruce Willis’ Mr. Church character in The Expendables), who keeps the prisoners together in their time of need.

With the addition of these heavy hitters, it looks like The Tomb will be the first of many prison-related movies announced over the past few years to actually make it to theaters. There was Super Max, the Justin Marks-scripted superhero story about the wrongly-incarcerated Green Arrow being trapped in a high security prison alongside the supervillains he put away. Soon after, there was a horror project also called Supermax (one word this time) which would have centered around a high security supernatural prison and a guard who must join forces with an inmate to escape after a riot breaks out. No word on further developments for either of those.

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Lionsgate has released the first teaser trailer for The Expendables 2. Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, Chuck Norris, Randy Couture, Liam Hemsworth, Jean Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger all star, and as the cast is the whole selling point for this film they’re all mentioned by name.

Watch the teaser below:

The Expendables are back and this time it’s personal… Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone), Lee Christmas (Lee Statham), Yin Yang (Jet Li), Gunnar Jensen (Dolph Lundgren),Toll Road (Randy Couture) and Hale Caesar (Terry Crews) — with newest members Billy the Kid (Liam Hemsworth) and Maggie (Yu Nan) aboard — are reunited when Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) enlists the Expendables to take on a seemingly simple job. The task looks like an easy paycheck for Barney and his band of old-school mercenaries.

But when things go wrong and one of their own is viciously killed, the Expendables are compelled to seek revenge in hostile territory where the odds are stacked against them. Hell-bent on payback, the crew cuts a swath of destruction through opposing forces, wreaking havoc and shutting down an unexpected threat in the nick of time — six pounds of weapons-grade plutonium; enough to change the balance of power in the world. But that’s nothing compared to the justice they serve against the villainous adversary who savagely murdered their brother. That is done the Expendables way.

The sequel, directed by Simon West (The Mechanic, Con Air), will be released August 17, 2012.

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Following the success of Fast Five ($600m worldwide) director Justin Lin suddenly found himself in demand. He signed a two-year production deal with Universal (which involved directing Fast Six), a first-look deal with Sony Pictures TV to develop TV projects, and became the director of choice for Terminator 5 following discussions with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

However, the problem for Lin is that both Fast Six and Terminator 5 are priority projects for those involved, and with both hoping to get started next year Lin has had to leave the Terminator franchise behind. For now.

From Deadline:

Things are starting to move on The Terminator franchise, but a plan by rights owner Megan Ellison and Arnold Schwarzenegger to put the first of two pictures in production for the fourth quarter of 2012 has forced director Justin Lin to drop out. But borrowing the film’s signature phrase “I’ll be back,” Lin has left the door open to a return if Ellison and Schwarzenegger will wait until he completes the sixth installment of The Fast and the Furious franchise.

The rush to continue the Terminator franchise is mainly due to the fact in 2018 the Terminator rights will revert back to James Cameron, who directed the first two films, but until then whoever holds the rights has time to make at least two more movies. True Grit producer Megan Ellison bought the rights back in May, and is now hoping to get a screenwriter, director and studio involved so production can begin in late-2012.

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Following the success of The Expendables last year ($274 million worldwide) a sequel moved swiftly into development and Simon West, who most recently directed The Mechanic, as well as Con Air and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, came on-board to direct.

Now Deadline reports that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis, who appeared briefly in the first film, “have just closed deals to take “substantial” roles” in the sequel.

Following the release of The Expendables Sylvester Stallone told his Twitter followers that he wanted Bruce Willis to be a “super villain” in the next film so, unless things have changed, he’ll be the bad guy. In the original Willis had a cameo as “Mr. Church,” a shadowy figure who sends Sly and his team of mercs on their mission. Arnold Schwarzenegger played a rival mercenary leader called Trent Mauser who let Sly and co. take the mission because he had other things to take care of.

Aside from Stallone, original cast members Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke, Jet Li and Terry Crews are expected to return. Jean-Claude Van Damme confirmed he’ll be part of the film after declining a role in the first film, and there’s talk of Chuck Norris also joining the ranks.

Filming will begin in October and Lionsgate are aiming for an August 2012 release.

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Things are moving forward on the Terminator front. According to Deadline True Grit producer Megan Ellison has won an auction for the rights to make at least two more Terminator movies, with Justin Lin (Fast Five) attached to direct and Arnold Schwarzenegger attached to star.

Apparently Lionsgate were on the verge of wrapping up the auction, but Ellison’s Annapurna Films came in with a higher bid which is speculated to be around $20 million.

What’s interesting is that Megan Ellison and Annapurna Films appear to be decent producers. They have crime drama The Wettest County in the World with Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Mia Wasikowska out next year, and recently wrapped Cogan’s Trade starring Brad Pitt.

No studio is currently attached to the Terminator project yet, but it will only be a matter of time. Personally I think the franchise has run its course, but if they bring good writers on-board to write the script it will boost confidence in the project. Fast Five may just be a summer popcorn flick, but it’s actually the best reviewed movie of franchise so Justin Lin may be able to make something worthwhile with a decent script.

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Two weeks ago Fast Five director Justin Lin said he had spoken to Arnold Schwarzenegger about making another Terminator movie, but “it has to be the right circumstances” and with “the right people”. Plus he’s getting more offers now, so it may not be the next thing he directs.

Well now according to Deadline things are moving forward. Schwarzenegger, who is now in his 60s, has officially attached himself to the movie, which is currently being shopped to studios. Universal, Sony and Lionsgate are said to be “looking hard at the package”, and the producers have chosen the right time to put it out there as Lin’s Fast Five is set to be #1 at the box office this weekend.

Deadline also mentions that in 2018 the Terminator rights will revert back to James Cameron, who directed the first two films. But until then whoever holds the rights has time to make at least two more movies. They don’t need to, and I’m with Cameron when he says the franchise has run its course, but it’s a well known property and there’s money to be made.

No screenwriter is attached at the moment, but it shouldn’t be long before a studio buys the Arnie/Lin package and a writer is hired.

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In February we heard that Universal were interested in making another Terminator movie, and their plan was to pair Fast Five director Justin Lin with screenwriter Chris Morgan on the project.

Santa Barbara hedge fund Pacificor won the rights back in 2009 so whatever happens with the Terminator franchise in the future will have to involve them, however in a recent interview Justin Lin revealed that directing a Terminator movie could be in his future, and he’s spoke to Arnold Schwarzenegger about it.

From Omelete (via Collider):

I think one of the great things is that when I got started, no one would return my calls, and now I get a lot of phone calls, which is good. I have options. Terminator was one of my favorite films growing up. And I feel I have a take that I would love to see, and I’ve talked with Arnold and we’ve talked and we’ll see. Again, I would love to do it, but it has to be the right circumstances. It has to be the right people. And there’s other projects too. But I’m in a position now that I can choose more than I could a year ago, two years ago. So that is something that is potentially in my future, but when I get home I will sit down and look at my options and choose what I want to do.

James Cameron, who directed the first (and best) two film thinks the franchise has ‘run its course’ and I have to agree with him. The Fast and Furious franchise is fun mindless action, but if the Terminator franchise is to continue it needs a director with a unique vision or take on the mythology. We don’t need another movie where things just blow up.

The return of Arnold Schwarzenegger would be welcomed, but that doesn’t guarantee we’ll get a good movie. It’ll be interesting to see what Justin Lin has planned, and if it will ever happen.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger put himself back onto the acting circuit last month after spending a number of years in politics, and offers were bound to pour in. Sylvester Stallone will probably want him for The Expendables 2, and James Cameron has spoken about wanting to work with Schwarzenegger again at some point (most likely post-Avatar trilogy).

No announcement has been made as to what Schwarzenegger’s comeback role will be, but at “The Arnold Classic” (an annual fitness event hosted by Schwarzenegger) the returning actor said he’s working on…a comic book character.

TheArnoldFans attend the event and got the chance to ask what projects are currently sitting on his table:

“Well, first of all it’s more 15 films, obvious ones from The Terminator to remakes of Predator and The Running Man and all of those things. Then also a lot of original stuff too. But I am also packaging a Comic Book character right now. I’m going to announce that sometime by the end of March or the beginning of April.”

I’ve no idea which comic book character he intends to play, but I guess we only have a few weeks until we find out.

Adrien Brody revealed last year that Arnie was supposed to make a cameo in Predators but he was a bit busy being governor of California, so that never happened. 20th Century Fox are currently working on a sequel so Schwarzenegger could appear in that. We also recently heard that Universal were planning another Terminator movie with Fast Five director Justin Lin and screenwriter Chris Morgan. Getting Schwarzenegger back is probably a priority for them as The Terminator is the actors most iconic role.

Which movie do you want to see Arnold Schwarzenegger return with?

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Since the first day the ridiculous cast was announced for The Expendables, action movie lovers everywhere have been anticipating the release of Stallone’s magnum opus of manliness. This movie almost seems like required viewing for a certain segment of the population, and if you count yourself among this group, nothing in this review will change your mind. But for the rest of you, I must admit (with a heavy heart): The Expendables is a waste of impressive casting, a spent bullet casing of a movie that leaves you scratching your head and asking, “this is what everyone was waiting for?”

I had high hopes for this film – too high, as it turns out. With audacious character names like Barney Ross (Stallone), Lee Christmas (Statham), Tool (Rourke), Yin Yang (Li), Gunner Jensen (Lundgren), Paine (Austin), and – I sh*t you not – Hale Caesar (Crews) and Toll Road (Couture), I figured this movie had to be so self-aware that it had to be a parody of the genre. While The Expendables is definitely a throw back to the brawny action films of the 80′s and 90′s, there is absolutely nothing else going on under the surface. I enjoyed Stallone’s previous film, 2008′s Rambo, because – while being shockingly violent – it also had a message behind it. Stallone used his iconic character to comment on the atrocities in Burma, and while you could enjoy the movie without that reminder, it gave the film a little extra for us to chew on. And if you’ll forgive the continuation of the analogy, The Expendables doesn’t provide any meat this time around – just spice, in the form of excessive explosions.

Look, of course I love explosions on film. I’m a guy. But I like my action movies one of two ways: either Bourne-style, with a legitimate storyline that makes me think, or Tony Jaa-style, in which there is only the illusion of a plot, allowing Jaa to transition from one action sequence directly to the next. This film teeters toward the latter, but unfortunately relies too much on exposition that no one cares about (Mikey Rourke’s mirror scene, anyone?) and sacrifices fun in the process. The tone is so somber for most of the movie that we can’t even celebrate victories with the characters; as soon as a scene ends, the leads – especially Statham’s character – go right back to moping around, feeling sorry for themselves because they can’t hang onto their women (mercenary soldiers are never home, you see).

The writing is absolutely atrocious. Like the ludicrous names of the characters, I hoped it was done on purpose to provide a sort of commentary/parody of the genre. But after the first fifteen minutes, I couldn’t remember all of the horrendous lines of dialogue anymore because there were so many flying off the screen. The unsettling truth set in very early: this wasn’t on purpose at all. Stallone and co-writer David Callaham actually thought this would be a good movie. After hearing the cast talk about this movie at Comic-Con, I truly thought we were in for something special. But with one of the worst scripts I’ve seen realized in the past five years, The Expendables couldn’t even sustain my interest for its mercifully short 103 minute run time. After a point, you can only take so many cliched plot twists, reveals, and explosions.

Ah, the explosions. In the final scene, so many buildings and cars explode that on multiple occasions I thought they had blown up everything at the island compound. Turns out I was wrong – every time that thought crosses your head, something else blows up. This probably sounds awesome to some people (Trust me, I was one of you!), but at a certain point – right about this time in the movie, actually – I just didn’t care what was happening to these characters. There’s no sense of peril for any of them, even though they’re getting shot at from every angle and inexplicably survive at every turn. One character even asks, “How did two professionals pass through security, kill forty-one men, and leave?” How, indeed. Generally speaking, I’m totally OK with these kinds of movies – I really enjoyed The A-Team earlier this summer – but this one wasn’t even fun. The one-liners were embarrassingly bad (many falling flat in the theater, leaving half of my audience turning to each other with quizzical looks on our faces), and the action scenes were almost as uninspired, relying on Greengrass-style shaky cam instead of the classical 80′s and 90′s style that we wanted to see.

As expected, the acting was borderline dismal throughout the entire film. Randy Couture’s delivery was as wooden as you’d expect from a mixed martial arts star, and you get major points (salute) if you’re able to comprehend every word from the slurred Lundgren or the weathered Stallone (double points if you catch his dialogue when he’s mumbling with a cigar in his mouth). General Garza is played abysmally by David Zayas (Angel Batista of “Dexter”), and Jet Li was only there to be made fun of for being short. Yes, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger show up in a cameo. Let’s just say Arnie’s had way too much time off – aside from the fact that his character doesn’t even need to be in this scene, he was dreadful, and Willis wasn’t much better. There are some jokes thrown in during this scene, but again, they all fall flat and induce eye-rolling instead of legitimate laughs. Half of this film is spent laughing at it instead of laughing with it.

None of this is to say I hated the movie. There are some bright moments scattered throughout, certain explosions or fights choreographed in a way that make it quasi-interesting for those looking for hints of new ideas. There are two that I can think of, and Statham is involved with both of them. I could mention specific scenes, but I’m sure most of you will end up seeing the film for yourselves anyway, so I won’t spoil anything. I’d probably do the same thing if I were you. This is the kind of movie that, in theory, only comes around once in a lifetime and demands to be seen on the big screen. (I say “in theory” because there are already rumblings of a sequel.) The Expendables is not the savior of modern action films that I yearned for: instead, it’s a straightforward, big, dumb action movie and if that’s what you’re looking for, you’ll be pleased. I was just hoping for a bit more from the talent involved. Until next time…

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Live Free or Die Hard director Len Wiseman is in final negotiations to direct a Total Recall remake for Columbia Pictures according to Variety.

The original film directed by Paul Verhoeven in 1990 starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sharon Stone and followed an apparently unsophisticated construction worker, Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger), who turns out to be a freedom fighter from Mars who has been relocated to Earth, and his attempts to restore order, and reverse the corrupt influence of commercial powers.

Kurt Wimmer, who recently wrote the script for Salt, is writing the screenplay which is being described as a “new, contemporized adaptation”. In the press release Wisemen commented:

“I’ve always been fascinated with Philip K. Dick’s short story, and I’m excited at that prospect of diving even deeper into the type of world it evokes and the questions it asks. I love that the most crucial mystery our character is trying to solve is the one of his own soul.”

Len Wiseman is also producing Underworld 4 and may return to direct Die Hard 5 if Bruce Willis gets his wish, so it could be a while before we see the Total Recall remake on the big screen.

Do you want a Total Recall remake?

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