EXCLUSIVE: A third installment of the extreme sports action film XXX is revving up again, with some real twists and turns. The project has left Columbia Pictures, with negotiations underway for Paramount to take over the franchise, finance production and distribute the film in late 2011 or early 2012. Rob Cohen has returned as director, and reunites with Vin Diesel, with whom he made the original. The new installment of XXX will be shot with 3D cameras.
The project is controlled by Joe Roth, who generated the first two installments through Revolution Studios. Roth licensed the third installment to Columbia Pictures, which financed the development of a script by Michael Ferris and John Brancato. Ultimately, the studio decided not to go forward. Roth took the package only to Paramount, whose vice chairman, Rob Moore, worked on the original at Revolution. Roth, who just produced Alice in Wonderland and is exec producer of the upcoming Tom Cruise-starrer Knight and Day, will produce with Neal Moritz. Diesel and Samantha Vincent will also be producers through his One Race Productions banner.
The plot: Xander Cage (Diesel) is left for dead, but returns to execute a very difficult assignment that only he can pull off. Samuel L. Jackson will reprise his role as Agent Augustus Gibbons, Xander’s handler. Most of the action takes place in Europe. Diesel will star in the film right after he completes another installment of The Fast and the Furious, which Universal Pictures will release June 10, 2011. Paramount expects to distribute the film six months or so later.
The big surprise is the return of Cohen, who was expected to be rooted firmly in the Middle Ages. He had been attached to direct the third XXX with Diesel, but departed last summer to direct New Regency’s Medieval, a period action film based on an Alex Litvak/Michael Finch period spec action script. Cohen returned to XXX when Medieval stalled because of a logistical setback. The plan was to shoot this spring in a picturesque village in Dubrovnik, which would have saved the costs of building period sets because the surrounding area is so authentic. Trouble is, tourists flock to the place for just that reason and the shooting schedule threatened to bump up against the start of tourist season. Tourism won.
It wasn't immediately clear why Columbia dropped out, but the studio’s last film with Cohen, the 2005 action film Stealth, was a costly failure for the studio that grossed just $32 million domestically. Cohen rebounded with The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, which grossed $401 million worldwide. But that was for Universal.
Said Cohen: "I left the project because I had a very strong instinct it would never get made at Sony, that it wasn't picking up the critical mass and traction that a movie needs. I got along very well with everybody there, from top to bottom, but in these recession times, you make your picks carefully and it always comes down to judgment calls based on taste and the objectives you're trying to meet for the studio. For whatever reason, Paramount sees the future of this, and we're in a very positive place at a new home where there is genuine enthusiasm."
Cohen, who is now shooting Coke's first ever 3D commercial, said he's excited by the possibilities.
"I feel what we did in the beginning of the decade was bring a different attitude to the action movie and a different kind of hero," Cohen said. "With the new 3D instrument and the techniques I can apply, we can create a different kind of cutting-edge experience in 3D by shooting it that way from the beginning the way James Cameron did Avatar. This won't be fantasy characters, it takes place on Earth in real time. That's a new dimension to be explored, and I'm excited."
Rob Cohen, great guy! All the best to him.
Sony also put “Knight & Day” starring Tom Cruise into turnaround which Fox just made. Sony also passed on “Alice In Wonderland” – both from Joe Roth.
xxx 3? no noo nooooooooooooooooooooooo….
This is a no brainer – Vin Diesel has 2 franchises that have totaled over $1 billion in gross worldwide over the years. this is a great way to reinvent the franchise by bringing the original players back and shooting it in 3d – mind you i said shooting it in 3d not converting it in 3d.
smart move paramount – this will gross easily $300 million worldwide.
Vin Diesel and 3D are two things that should never be combined.
I hope this is an April Fools joke.
If Paramount is seriously considering this then put a fork in Brad Grey… another Fast and Furious sequel doesn’t suddenly bring Vin back from rotten tuna country.
Brad Grey just gave his studio another franchise why would you put a fork in him? Paramount now has Iron Man, Star Trek, Transformers, Mission Impossible, GI Joe, and now XXX. That’s A LOT of franchises for one studio. Paramount is quickly taking over the action market.
The important question is why would Columbia let this franchise go? Just like Paramount let Twilight franchise go, Columbia is going to regret this one. Especially since they only have 1 franchise – Spiderman which they already delayed by “reimagining” it. They lose the rights to that franchise in 2015. So, why let this franchise go to a competing studio.
They let it go because this franchise was dead after the second XXX (grossed only $26 million domestically!). While Vin Diesel’s return to the role will definetely make this film more successfull than the last one, maybe Diesel and Cohen hadn’t signed on until after Columbia let the franchise go.
Then again, Columbia might’ve let the franchise go even with Diesel signed on. His only hit role in the last five years was Fast And Furious. And that had a lot more buzz going for it.
Also, while the original XXX cost only $70 million to make back in 2002, the third installment will most likely cost at least $125 million. Let’s say the movie costs an additional $40 million to market. That means that if the studio gets 50% in return on investment, it will have to make at least $330 million worldwide just to break even. Fast And Furious made $343 million worldwide.
So you can start to understand why Columbia would let this “dead franchise” go.
Sorry to rain on your parade, but Paramount does NOT own any of the Iron Man films or the other Marvel films they distribute. Technically, they belong to Marvel.
Oh, joy! Rob Cohen directing again! I can’t wait! He came up with the whole idea for XXX! Just ask him! What a talented director and all around great guy!
Bring it on! Can’t wait! Cohen is an amazing action director, seeing him work in 3D is going to be awesome.
Oh what a biz. VD passed on both these sequels when they offered him $20+M paydays back when. And now, here he is, back again. My question is: how much does he and Cohen get paid?
I’m shocked that Sony let this one go, it seems they never got over their own mistake for thinking Ice Cube could replace Vin in the franchise. Looks like Paramount is following Universal’s example by sticking with what works, the first XXX did $277M worldwide. Kudos for Rob Moore for going with his gut.
p.s. Has anyone else seen Vin’s Facebook page? 2nd only to Barack Obama with almost 8M fans? Craziness…
Ironically, Sony developed another Joe Roth movie, “Knight & Day”, but put that into turnaround and Fox picked it up and made it. It stars Tom Cruise and comes out this summer. Trailer looks really good.
Peter, if you knew how much Sony lost on Joe Roth and Rob Moore at Revolution Studios, you would understand why they let it go… And it was Joe and Rob who ditched Vin for ice cube… Sony just had to smile and take it up the ass. Combine Joe’s track record at Revolution with Rob Cohen’s dismal failure on Stealth and I give Amy and Michael credit for taking a pass. Even if the film goes on to gross, it will have to gross huge numbers to earn a profit cuz Rob doesn’t take a shit without it costing over 100 million… I say the risk outweighs the reward on this one when you sit back and crunch the numbers… and maybe Sony will get a percentage of the gross just for sitting on the sideline and watching Paramount sweat it out… that happens a lot on turnaround deals.
good luck, good riddance, don’t let that 3d door hit you in the ass on the way out.
According to a Los Angeles Time article – I heard Sony/Amy Pascal passed on Alice In Wonderland. And that movie is about to make $800 million worldwide. I wonder who’s laughing now.
Here’s the article to prove it:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-facetime11-2010mar11,0,2127041.story
P will be owned by Dubi investors in no less than 3 years if they keep this up. I’m screaming Jihad now.
“I went to Harvard!” — Rob Cohen’s arrogant, obnoxious way to end a disagreement on-set or in a writer’s meeting.
Typical of most Harvard undergrads I’ve met. Self-satisfied, arrogant jerks who inevitably prove themselves to be dumb as a bag of hammers. Give me street smarts and common sense over book smarts and narrow experience any day. On the other hand, the graduate Harvard people I’ve met have all been terrific…
Hmmmm…..
What! arrogant and hateful ….. you do not know
It’s funny, because I’ve only met one other Harvard graduate who would actually say “I went to Harvard,” when asked. And she was quite nouveau, much like Rob Cohen. Everyone else I’ve met who went to Harvard ALWAYS responds “I went to college in Boston” when asked. Usually very low-key, understated people publicly. It’s everyone who didn’t go to Harvard who transfers their resentment on them.
What has Vin D done to anybody?
He can act- Knock Around Guys, Riddick 1 2, hopefully three.
He created a franchise Fast and Furious.
He created a game company.
He had a great scifi movie Babylon AD
Further while he denies it, like Prince he’s Italian/Sicilian/ Black.
A beautiful thing. Stop hating.
Dude – Riddick sucks. Both of them.
That’s your reference…Babylon AD?!?
The film that no one saw and got a 7% fresh rating? Yes, that would be five whole points better than the other “great scifi movie” Battlefield Earth receiving a mere 2%.
And who’s haiting? Seems like he’s the one with hate if he denies his own race???
Many years ago, after both of the original Fast & Furious and XXX, Vin said he was against sequels. Seems like he’s seen the light as of late
It seems the only thing Hollywood executives knows how to do is to find a way to keep recycling its crap. Hardly an original thought flows through that town anymore. I blame them, but I blame the people more. Hollywood will keep up this trend because people continue to flock to the theater to soak it up.
He probably should have just stuck with these franchises since the beginning. The whole coming back thing reeks of a mismanaged career. I doubt many other people want to work with this guy, the director of A.D. trashed his experience.
Vin’s going to get $15 million, so he’s still getting paid.
It was only a matter of time before Paramount got into the adult film industry.
Oh wait. When you said XXX, I thought this might actually be a 3-D movie I’d want to see. My bad.
Haha, me too.
I thought xxx2 was better in script and direction, but less people saw this and I thought the first one was just okay. I hope they can make the script as good as the second one and have vin diesel as star — then they are golden.
This sounds like it has the potential to be awesome.
well there is a big problem. if any of you watch the second xxx, they say xander is dead. so how can he be back.
They could bring him back in hundreds of ways. Plus, do you think Xander really went that easily? Shame on you.
I couldn’t be more pumped for XXX 3 with Vin Diesel. THe first one was amazing, the Ice Cube one deserves to be banished to bargain bin oblivion for eternity.
Nice work Rob- do the franchise proud!
Xxx vdeo