The 'G.I. Joe: Retaliation' helmer reveals the upcoming sequel will see Cobra as a different character than the one Joseph Gordon-Levitt played in the first film, saying he will be a real 'badass.'
- Feb 16, 2012
AceShowbiz - Director John M. Chu has revealed the reason why "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" will be nothing like its predecessor, "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra". When attending this week's Toy Fair in New York, the filmmaker opened up to Moviefone that the upcoming sequel will feature a different portrayal of the villainous Cobra Commander.
While it is known that Joseph Gordon-Levitt will not reprise his role as the supervillain, Chu said that the sequel "couldn't lose Cobra Commander" no matter what. Asked if Cobra in the sequel will be the same character as played by Gordon-Levitt in the first movie, the director teased, "No. [Smiling] But we figured out a way that's pretty nice."
He explained that in "G.I. Joe 2", fans will "get the Cobra Commander that you've always wanted." He added, "Or, to me, what I always wanted: a badass villain. He's one of the most iconic villains ever. I'm even following him on Twitter, he's so funny."
During the chat, Chu also teased that fans of the franchise might see Cobra's fellow supervillain, Destro, appearing in the sequel. "You may see a little glimpse of Destro. We'll have to see," he said before adding that the upcoming film will pay homage to "Silent Interlude" issue of the Marvel comic book series.
"Speaking of the comic book, I love 'Silent Interlude'. It's one of my favorite. Obviously that changed everything for Joe," said the filmmaker. "We do a little homage in our movie to 'Silent Interlude'. I'm very excited for the fans to see what we do with that."
In "G.I. Joe 2", the Joe team must work together to fight against mercenary Zartan and his accomplices. Having the world leaders under his influence, Zartan launches attack towards innocent populace and has some new heavies on the payroll to keep G.I. Joe at bay. The action film is due to open in the U.S. on June 29.
Channing Tatum, Ray Park and Lee Byung-hun will return as Duke, Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow respectively. They are joined by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as Roadblock, Adrianne Palicki as Lady Jaye, Elodie Yung as Jinx and Bruce Willis as General Joseph Colton.
