Last week, Sylvester Stallone sent out a Tweet fishing for some feedback about actor/director Mel Gibson taking the reins of THE EXPENDABLES 3, which stirred a lot of pros and cons, with most of the cons being that Mel was “above” the material. Yesterday, Stallone followed up with his feelings on Mel as a contender to direct the film and also confirmed the return of Wesley Snipes, who was just released from prison after serving 28 months of a 3-year sentence for tax evasion. Sly confirmed the addition of Snipes via the same thread as the Mel Gibson Tweet, which you can see below:
Stallone’s follow-up Tweet about Gibson’s involvement confirmed that the actor/director is not yet a lock for the film, but a longshot. However, he seems confident that anything could happen. For Stallone, who has been in the industry long enough to see the good and the bad happen unexpectedly, I like to think that he has the right level of expectation. Personally, I think Mel taking on THE EXPENDABLES 3 would be a great move, especially since no one is really returning his calls these days. It could be the shot he needs to get some traction on many of the other projects he’s been developing throughot the last few years.
All of that goes double for Snipes. A theatrical release with some of his big-screen compadres is just what the career doctor ordered, I’d say.
No word on a start date for THE EXPENDABLES 3 and a lot of names have been tossed about, confirmed, unconfirmed, etc., so it’s hard to get a grasp on just who’s in and who’s out. An official announcement will clear all that right up. Stallone will next be seen in ESCAPE PLAN with Arnold Schwarzenegger on September 13, 2013, John Herzfeld‘s REACH ME with Lauren Cohan, and GRUDGE MATCH with Robert De Niro (2014). Snipes last film was GALLOWWALKERS, and Mel Gibson will next be seen as the lead villain in Robert Rodriguez‘s MACHETE KILLS on September 13, 2013.