When it comes to the Expendables franchise the key word is escalation. With The Expendables 2 the muscled-up group of actors truly raised the bar with extended roles for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis as well as parts for Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Scott Adkins. So with Expendables 3 they somehow have to push it even further and bring in more luminaries of the genre. And they continue to gun for the top guys.
Dolph Lundgren, who has played "hero" Gunnar Jensen i n both films, recently spoke with MovieWeb and revealed that the production is still looking to pack its cast with more big action star names, and that there's three in particular whose names keep floating to the top. "I don't know anything for sure," Lundgren told the site. "I have heard that they do want Wesley Snipes. They want Jackie Chan. Nicolas Cage, I have heard too. But we don't know want is going on just yet."
But while they're still trying to figure out that angle of the production, apparently the project is only a few months away from cameras rolling, despite the fact the last movie only opened last August. While a script hasn't been completed yet, Lundgren confirmed that it's being written now and that they will likely start filming in the fall. But he added that he also isn't running into the writer's room constantly and making sure that they are doing justice by his character. Asked about his collaboration process with co-star and producer Sylvester Stallone - whose history goes all the way back to Rocky IV - Lundgren said,
"I let him go at it first. He kind of knows me creatively, and personally, because we've worked together quite a bit. So I will usually read the script, and then I will add a few comments about this or that. He knows all of the actors that are in the piece, and there are so many characters involved. They all want to be involved, and everyone wants to have a little something special to do. So, he tries to satisfy that. He's done a great job so far. And I trust him. I usually add a few comments, and he is open to that. Yeah, if everything works out...All these other variables...Then I am not that worried about the script, really."
The Expendables 3 doesn't have an official release date yet, but is expected for summer 2014.
