More On Which EX Might Die First - Minor Spoiler Possible

I usually don't post pictures of stunt doubles unless there is a good story behind it. Well here I think we might have a new element that would slightly change our theory about Couture's character's fate in EX2. This picture seems to be showing Couture's double at the airport scene which we believe to be the movie's finale, the last battle that also involves Schwarzenegger, Willis & Norris in addition to the EX team (minus the one that is savagely killed by the villains in the course of the movie). 

In our Anatomy of the EX2 Plot we initially thought that Couture's character would die before the airport battle since there was no evidence of his presence on set while the scenes were being shot at the airport. This picture shows that he must have actually been there since his double was on set with Lundgren's. So maybe his character doesn't die before the airport battle but we still think he might during the final battle. 

Another one of our assumptions that becomes stronger is the fate of Hemsworth's charterer who we believe is the EX to be viciously killed by the villains and avenged by the rest of the EX team. The filming in HK did not show any indication that Li's character would die in the movie and the fact that Hemsworth did not film any scenes in HK nor in Bulgaria during the shooting of the airport scenes is a very strong indication that his character is the one on the line of fire. This is only what we think and it's of course open for discussion.

EX2 Teaser Trailer & Poster in French

A couple of weeks ago we posted the German version of EX2 teaser trailer for our German viewers. We also have quite a number of readers from French speaking countries and Quebec/Canada, so it's time to post the two French versions of EX2 teaser trailer that were released a few days ago in France & Canada.

The French version of the poster has also been released but only in France and not yet in Canada - EX2 is called "Expendables 2 Unité Spéciale" in France & "Les Sacrifiés 2" in Canada.

It's interesting to note that unlike the German version where Van Damme was credited with "Mit" ("With"), both European & Canadian versions follow the American version of the cast and Van Damme gets billed with "Ainsi que" in France, and "Également" in Canada, both mean "Also" in English.

Teaser Trailer France:

Teaser Trailer Canada:

En attendant la sortie d'EX2 restez bien sage...

Jan 21 - 11:30 PM HK Time - EX2 Filming Wrapped

Filming wrapped on EX2 as of Jan 21, it should soon enter into post-production. Li has filmed his scenes in 4 days as I reported previously so we can expect more or less the same amount of screen time for him as Willis and Schwarzenegger (the latter had also filmed for 4-5 days - see Characters Screen Time).

Crews, Lundgren were confirmed to be on set in HK. Stallone was also reported to be there but it's uncertain whether he filmed much, he must have been on set for one or two days at best. Couture did not go to HK, and it's highly probable that Hemsworth and Statham did not go either. As for Nan no info is available. There is also 90% certainty that Van Damme did not shoot any scenes as expected, he was in HK but simply for personal reasons. There were speculations in the beginning by the Chinese news sources that Schwarzenegger and Willis could also show up in HK but they did not as expected. The four days were mainly focused on Li and his fight scenes some of which were already shot in Bulgaria using his stunt double. Given the short time Stallone spent there, there might be scenes where the two have some dialogue but might not share a lot of fight scenes together (just assuming here).

That should be it for EX2 production, now it's time for some editing and post-production, let's hope they do a good job and deliver some serious results.

Post PG-13 - Time For Some EX2 News

Crews tweeted the following messages: "I feel your pain about the EX2 PG-13. But do you really think we've all gone soft as baby thighs? No sirs. You will love it. Trust ya boy." & "I kill more baddies in the first 3 min of EX2 than I did the whole last movie. Don't let the smooth taste fool you. This suckers got kick." Hopefully these messages reduce some of the pain fans have gone through over the past couple of days.

Van Damme also thanked Stallone on his Facebook page after the latter confirmed the PG-13 rumor: "What can I say about Mr. Stallone? He is a great actor/director and a true fighter but also a great and amazing person! I feel honored for what he said about me. Thank you. — JCVD"

Going back to HK, new pictures of Stallone taken on Jan 18 showing him in CA without his mustache have shown up. This leads us to believe that either Stallone did not go to HK or his stay was very, very short. Filming started on Jan 16 only, if he made it back to CA by Jan 18 then he only spent a day or at best two over there. Another indication that he might not have gone to HK at all was the picture that was taken of him by Carpenter on his private jet where he didn't have his mustache. That picture was taken right after they finished shooting in New Orleans. So he obviously did not grow his mustache back in between NO & HK which is a necessary feature of his character in EX2, maybe he used a fake one while he was in HK. Where I'm going with all this, the HK scenes may not have a lot of Stallone/Li interaction but again nowadays everything is possible in post-production, so maybe not a big deal.

No news or pictures released over the past couple of days from set in HK. Crews posted a new video of himself yesterday from HK that can be seen here.

Point of No Return: EX2 Already Shot in PG-13

For those fans still hoping to see Stallone fight to chagne the EX2 rating or to see studios listen to their request and change their mind to accomdate the true fans of EX2, we unfortunately have to dispaoint them. EX2 has already been shot to be granted a PG-13 rating. The confirmation came this morning from Harry of It Ain't Cool, this is the same guy who received the PG-13 confirmation from Stallone himself. It also confirms our theory that EX2 was set from the very beginning to be released in PG-13 so it wasn't just for Norris. This is what he had to say to one of the Stallone Zone's fan members:

"Dude - accept it, move on. You'll live better.

What I hear is they didn't even shoot hard versions with nuts tons of Blood & guts - because it was always the intent. They don't have foul language takes. The film was structured and shot to be the hardest PG 13 they can make.

IT has been done. LIONSGATE is focused on creating mass audience films now. HUNGER GAMES. You can make a pretty great action film in the PG 13 arena. It has been done. I'd be more worried about the director's history. Harry"

Like we said in our previous story, we have to continue to hope that a PG-13 EX2 still delivers on its promises. Once again for our part, we'll go and see the movie just for the joy of seeing our action idols reunited on the big screen for what might be their final battle. We may risk to be disappointed, the expectation is set lower now so it could only get better...

In PG-13 We Trust? - Sly: trust me ... this film is LARGE

By now everyone knows it, Sly confirmed EX2 PG-13 rating and defended it. We deliberately wanted to be last to express our point of view on the issue after things have calmed down a little bit more. So far no other news on EX2 had initiated such a massive reaction from fans, so it has become a pretty serious case that EX2 producers better take into consideration or it might back fire.

Before going further, I have to say, we didn't welcome the news but were not overwhelmingly surprised since we kind of knew and had said a few words about the PG-13 rating of EX2 when Norris first openly talked about it.

EX2 was strongly geared towards PG-13 from the very beginning by the producers and the only indication that contradicted  a PG-13 direction came in an interview that was given by Nan's stunt double Megan Nguyen where she stated that Stallone had succeeded in changing the direction of the movie and was filming it towards an R rating. The problem is that fans have naturally expected EX2 to be rated R and never questioned a PG-13 move, while the Nguyen's interview was not taken seriously and did not make a lot noise at the time, it was the first serious indication of EX2 producers real agenda. We simply think that Stallone was not bale to exercise his influence to convince the studios or he would have done it, and Norris doesn't have enough power to change the direction of such an expensive movie and simply took advantage of a given situation to promote his new image of wanna-be-saint. We are certain that this is merely a financially motivated move orchestrated by the studios.

Studios are obviously looking to attract a younger audience as we repeatedly wrote about it, the signing of Hemsworth was a strong indication of that. We just have a problem with their logic, why younger viewers who were born after the 80-90's action movies who have never seen these 65-70 year old actors would pay to see them now. Wasn't the whole essence of EX to offer a generation of fans a dream they have been waiting for almost 30 years. Producers might get disappointed...

Stallone says "the film is fantastic with Van Damme turning in an inspired performance... Our final battle is one for the ages... trust me when I say this film is LARGE in every way and delivers on every level"

In Stallone we partially trust. Yes we are sure the reunion of the action icons in one movie will be exceptional, yes the return of Van Damme and Norris on the big screen will be rewarding, yes the finale at the airport with Schwarzenegger, Stallone and Willis firing guns side by side will be out of this world, but what about the rest and things in between.

We are not too worried about the language to tone down as Norris put it, Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Van Damme never used overly coarse language in their movies, it's not their style any way. The concern is mainly on the action scenes. We have a hard time imagining those action icons in a PG-13 action movie not being able to express the talent they are known for, doing real action movies.

As hardcore supporters of EX2, in Stallone we will cautiously trust and go see the movie in theatres and hope to see the epic movie we've so long waited for. We think it's worth it just for the joy of seeing our action idols on the screen for what might be their final battle. If disappointed and our dream shattered after 30 years of a long wait, this blog will cease after August 17 and belong to the museum of the web, EX3 or not, disappointed we might remain for the remainder of our lives. For now we continue to hope that Sly & Co. won't let us down...

First Set Photo of Li from HK

It's finally here, the first on set photo of EX2 since they started shooting in HK has showed up. It was posted by Crews on his Twitter account with the following message: "One of the greatest actor/martial artists whom ever lived: JET LI #RESPECT http://fb.me/K8lvdzYK". This is the first photo of Li in EX2, enjoy!

Security Still Tight, Couture Out

We've been digging hard but no news or photos have been released from the set of EX2 in HK. Security is very tight around the studio and no journalist is allowed to get close. The only picture that was taken yesterday outside the studio was of the truck that brought lunch for the crew, this is how tight security is on EX2 right now.

As reported yesterday Crews has already arrived in HK.

An interview with Couture was posted on YouTube (link) in which he reveals he won't be filming in HK. Based on his schedule of post New Orleans shooting we kind of thought he wouldn't be going to HK. Once again we strongly believe that the scenes being shot in HK right now are related to Stallone/Li dialogues and particularity to the Burma mission, a good part of which was already shot in Bulgaria. So Couture's presence in HK might not have been needed but this is not necessarily an indication that he's the EX to die in the movie, although we think he's one of the most probable EX members to be a causality during the mission ordered by Church (Anatomy of the EX2 Plot, Possible Spoiler!).

New Photos Show Studio Enhances Security in HK

It's been a disappointing day in terms of news or new on set photos. Around 7 AM HK time 7 cars started arriving in the studio. Security was extremely tight and journalists were not allowed to take any pictures or get close to the studio where the crew stared filming. Around 9 AM HK time Simon West was seen arriving on the set in a white car - see picture. We have also sourced a few more pictures, one of the set, one of the gates at the studio showing the tight security around it, and 2 pictures of the cars said to be transporting Li and crew members. Unfortunately that's it for now, we were optimistically hoping for some serious stuff today but nothing got out, EX2 production doesn't seem to be willing to let anything out for now. 

Update: Crews just confirmed his arrival in HK  by tweeting the following message: " NEWS ALERT: TERRY CREWS ATTACKS HONG KONG! (Hong Kong AP) Terry Crews arrived shortly before midnight and panic ensues. FILM AT 11....!"

 

 

Jan 16 - 8:30 AM HK Time - EX2 to Start Filiming

A Chinese language website reported an hour ago that filming is set to start this morning Jan 16 HK time. Stallone has already arrived on his private jet and is supposed to show up in Tuen Men at the factory turned into studio to start filming with Li for four consecutive days. There is also speculation that the picture posted by Carpenter on her twitter account was of the jet that transported her & Stallone to HK, Stallone could be seen on the picture but he doesn't have his mustache! There is also still discussion around JCVD's presence in HK and no official confirmation on the purpose of his visit. And finally a new picture of the set and a picture of Li on his way to the set? 

Update: the picture tweeted by Carpenter is not of the jet going to HK. Carpenter confirmed on her twitter account that she won't be shooting in HK.

EX2 Rated PG-13? Norris Talks EX2

Chuck Norris did an interview today with Bartek Węglarczyk from the Polish Dzień Dobry TVN in which he also talked about his role & experience in EX2. Here's the full interview with Polish voice-over but you could still hear some of the things he says: "that was a fun movie to do because I keep saving all their lives ... I'm like the super hero against Schwarzenegger, Stallone and ... Willis..."

He further added that the movie had a lot of hard language so he asked that all the hardcore language be taken out or he wouldn't do it. Producers have apparently accepted his request and made it a PG-13 film. 

Personally I didn't find EX1 language particularly coarse, it was mainly rated R for its action scenes. EX2 was originally supposed to be PG-13, the only semi official information on EX2 being rated R came from Megan Nguyen, one of the stunts who stated in an interview that Stallone had pushed to change the rating to R. So maybe the studios never intended to have EX2 rated R and Stallone wasn't able to convince them, who knows.

Fast Five was rated PG-13 and made lots of money so it's understanding that EX2 producers would like to have the same financial destiny for EX2. I remember Avi Lerner wasn't too happy about Rambo IV being rated R because he thought they could have made much more money had the move been less violent. Let's not blame it on Norris until we find out the final rating EX2 is going to get and who really pulled the strings.

Thanks to Expendables Premiere for the news.

New Set Photo, More Pictures of JCVD & Li in HK

Another Chinese language website posted more pictures in an article related to EX2. Still no news on Stallone or the the rest of the EX team. As I'm posting this it's almost midnight in HK so we don't expect more news to come in today (Eastern Time) but keep our fingers crossed. We are suspecting that filming should start tomorrow Monday HK time. By the time we wake up on the American continent we should be able to see more news and hopefully some on set photos of the EX team.

 

Today's Photo & Video of Li + First Set Photo

Some pictures and interviews of Li were released today on Chinese language websites. We gathered a sample specially for Li's fans. The video is in Chinese but offers a first peek of Li fresh from HK. 

Sina HK has also released a first photo of the set, more photos should start coming in over the next couples of days. We also learned that journalists were all over Li to find out the whereabouts of Stallone but Li kept the information very secret so nothing was leaked. It's not much but maybe enough to keep the excitement going until more serious stuff shows up.

EX2 Blog Mentioned by Popular Movie News Sites

A couple of days ago EX2 Blog was mentioned by several popular movie news sites for one of our posts that reported on the two new EX2 stills featuring Yu Nan & Stallone. I never thought this blog would ever receive the attention of the mass media. When I first started this blog with my friends, we were just looking for a space on the web where we could express our passion and gather our thoughts, writings, and all the news on EX2 in one place. We knew there could be some fans who would accidentally come across this blog and appreciate its content and share our passion, but I never thought our audience would grow so fast in such a short period of time. This blog has been only up and running since late November.

To many it may not be a big deal but trust me, I've been a businessman for many years and when you do something out of passion, work hard at it and stay professional, it always pays off and it's extremely rewarding. Yeah OK I'm getting too emotional here, this blog is really for fun, and my friends & I hope that it keeps making action fans like ourselves happy.

I'd like to thank all my friends & fans who have been supporting this blog by providing the latest news on EX2, writing stories (Jean for his fascinating and methodical theories, Elrey for sourcing the latest news and pictures from all around the globe), and last but not least Patrick of Expendables Premiere for his unconditional support from the beginning. I promise to keep it up and running at least until August 17.

EX2 Blog was mentioned by:

Comingsoon

JoBlo
Collider 

Cinema Blend  

Movieweb 
Moviehole

Myspace
Beyond Hollywood  

The Hollywood News
The Film Stage
Fused Film 

Van Damme in HK

Van Damme posted two videos of himself from HK. No more information is available as to whether he's there to take part of the EX2 shooting or coincidentally there for other personal business. He had initially informed one of his fan sites that he wouldn't be going to China for EX2.

Change of plan? We don't think so. The scenes to be shot in HK are most likely related to the Burma mission (you can read about it here, spoiler alert!). I also learned from VanDammeFanz that Van Damme lives in HK with his family, so his presence there is nothing unusual and should not be related to EX2.

Li Already in HK, Stallone Due Tomorrow

Just a brief update on the HK filming: according to Chinese language news sources, Li is already in HK where he participated in a charity event. He's supposed to eat with Stallone tomorrow so we can assume that Stallone is already on his way to Asia. Li also mentioned that he's not sure if they'll be filming in Tuen Men as reported earlier. He also indicated that he had initially turned down the offer to be in EX2 but production was so sincere and willing to accommodate him to shoot in China that he ended up accepting. It was confirmed again that Lundgren would join the team but no more mention of Willis or Schwarzenegger. As we receive more info we'll update accordingly.

Sources: The Sun, Takungpao, Singpao

EX2 Production to Move to Hong Kong Instead of China

This was breaking news on many sites in Hong Kong/China today. According to various Chinese language news sources, the EX team will be shooting in Hong Kong and no longer in mainland China. Apparently production was not able to obtain the necessary permits to shoot in mainland China and will have to move to Hong Kong instead. Filming should start early next week.

It's hard to get a proper translation of the articles but many of them are also mentioning Willis & Schwarzenegger, and it's not evident to conclude whether they are said to be part of the cast travelling to Hong Kong or simply cited as the big name actors playing in the movie. Stay tuned for more news to come soon...

Update: I had one of my Chinese friends translate the articles and he tells me that  according to the Sina Daily News which is a huge news paper in China, Stallone, Willis, Schwarzenegger & Lundgren are all said to go to Hong Kong soon. I would take this with a grain of salt though, I'd wait until we get a more official confirmation. 

Other info, they will film in a factory in Tuen Men for 4 days, so the total production time might be longer. Here's a video showing the factory where they will be shooting.

Sources: h.doverhk.com, ellehk.com, dailynews.sina.com, 1688.com.au, elle.com.hk, hk.apple.nextmedia.com

Sly & Arnold to Team Up in The Tomb!

I know this is not EX2 related and I usually don't post anything that is not EX2 related but I couldn't let this one go. We've all heard that Stallone is going to be starring in THE TOMB, well according to Ain't it Cool News Stallone "has a very interesting co-star that is currently circling and discussing with Sly to join him in THE TOMB... and that's Arnold Schwarzenegger". This is probably the best thing that could ever happen to complete EX2, a true Stallone/Schwarzenegger face-off, there is a God of action movies after all?

EX2 Filming in New Orleans!

Couture just posted a photo of himself from on the set of EX2 in New Orleans! Well it looks like they are not yet in China contrary to what we thought, I'm now thinking that Carpenter will also be filming her scenes in the US and not in China, she tweeted last night that she was fitting today.

Update 1: Couture just tweeted that he's "In N'awlins on set for the Expendables II, then back to Vegas on Friday for @Xtreme_Couture training camp then Saturday's GI Poker Tourney!" Sounds like he's either not going to China or at least won't go until next week!! Crews also Tweeted that he landed in NO yesterday. Stay tuned...

Update 2: Carpenter tweeted today "Sly, Jason, Dolf, Randy, Liam,Terry- I am a lucky lady!". I'm inclined to assume all those guys filmed in NO. What a change of plan, all this was unexpected and raises some question marks...

Update 3: Carpenter confirmed on her twitter account that "Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Bruce, Arnold and Vandame" are in EX2 but she "didn't work with them". This confirms that none of those guys has been filming in NO as we suspected they wouldn't. She also said she "wish she had more time with this band of bros" which implies she won't be going to Hong Kong.

EX2 Trailer in Deutsch

Having lived in different countries of Europe some years ago, I still find it interesting to see American movies dubbed in French, German, Spanish or Italian. Here's the German version of EX2 Teaser Trailer that has gone online today. The other interesting element of the trailer beside Willis's German voice is the fact that Van Damme is billed with "Mit" like Willis instead of "Auch" which is the German translation of "Also" that was assigned to him in the original trailer - for those who might wonder "mit" means "with" in English.
 

I should thank VanDammeFanz for the trailer.

Stallone-Nan EX2 Stills

I'm going to end up sounding like Nan's advocate, two new pictures of her with Stallone have shown up, these ones look like real stills of EX2.

 

Stallone Grows Back The Mustache

These pictures popped up today on a finish website and are said to be taken yesterday in Beverly Hills showing Stallone with the EX2 mustache grown back and ready to be taken on him to China, click on the pictures for a larger view.

Charisma Carpenter To Reprise Her Role in EX2

According to Latina.com Charisma Carpenter will reprise her role as Lacy (Jason Statham's girlfriend) in EX2.

The actress told Latina.com exclusively: "I'm thrilled to be back with the boys and to be working with iconic actors. My son thinks I’m the coolest mom ever!"

This comes as a surprise if true, she was not expected to be back specially since there was no word on her filming in Bulgaria or being set to go to China. We should find out soon with filming in China to resume in a few days.

Update 1: Carpenter confirmed the news an hour ago on her twitter account: "I HATED keeping this from all my faithful Frans but.. I was told to. .....Its true; I will be in Expendables 2!!!!!!!"

Update 2: Carpenter just confirmed on her Twitter account that she will start filming in a couple of days and will have a scene with "the whole gang", this all means that she should be going to China with the EX team!

New Picture: Yu Nan

This picture was found on a Chinese website. It's Yu Nan, and it looks like it's from EX2 looking at her outfit but we can't say for sure. I'm starting to be more convinced that she was rightfully cast in the lead female role. Want to know more about her, click here.

Hemsworth Talks Expendables 2 in MTV Interview

No exciting revelations, MTV News recently caught up with Hemsworth for a short interview. Here's the summary:

"I'm excited for 'The Hunger Games' to come out; I'm excited to see it," he said. "I just shot 'Expendables 2' ... That's another film that I want to go see. It will be weird that I'm in it." 

MTV: Hemsworth admitted that he was a bit starstruck on the set of "Expendables 2," given that the cast is chock-full of Hollywood's most celebrated action stars. 

"I grew up watching these guys and their movies, and then all of a sudden you have to pinch yourself when you're on set. You're looking at [Sylvester] Stallone, [Jason] Statham, [Randy] Couture, Terry Crews, [Jean-Claude] Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren," he said. "It's silly, it really is.

"You couldn't ask for a bunch of better guys than them," Hemsworth added. "They're so professional, good guys, so welcoming. That can be such a daunting thing for an actor to come on set with those guys, and they honestly couldn't have been nicer. They're just amazing."

Interview: Terry Crews talks EX2

Krum from The Arnold Fans has an exclusive interview with Crews and they talked EX2. Here's the part of the interview that pertains to EX2. For the full interview you can visit The Arnold Fans.

KRUM: I am thrilled to meet you Man! I have to let you know.. I'm excited for Expendables 2! You kicked some serious ass in the first one!

CREWS: Thanks man, I really appreciate it! Yeah Expendables 2 is going to be fantastic, and everyone is returning! Sly, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Jason Statham, everyone, except Mickey Rourke.

KRUM: Why isn't he returning?

CREWS: He was in the middle of another project, I heard, and couldn't get the time. Sad man. But this film is huge! I just got back from filming in Europe, Sly is taking us around the world to tell this one!

KRUM: What's Arnold's involvement?

CREWS: Arnold is back! He and Wills both. They have bigger roles this time around. I think everybody's gonna love it! Especially the fans.

KRUM: Does working with Sly & Arnold keep you hungry for staying so built?

CREWS: Haha, thanks man, yeah, these guys both are still HUGE! They are still in great shape, and me, coming from Flint Michigan, have always looked up to those guys who have gone so far, building themselves up from nothing, and now they have everything. They worked hard. And it really does keep me going too.

The EX2 Enigma - Part II

Back in Nov. 2011, I wrote a story that I called The EX2 Enigma where I  tried to establish some sort of a pattern to Millennium/Lionsgate's tactics used to cover their blunders that started with the release of a first plot in May 2011, later rejected by Stallone, the publication of the cast on Millennium's website in Sep. 2011, removed a couple of days later, and finally the now famous EX2 poster said to be a forgery on the same day of its exclusive release/leak in Nov 2011. 

There has been some interesting development since then which leads me to think that the Enigma story deserves a follow up to further support its theory.

The EX2 Poster: perhaps the most controversial blunder of the series. The EX2 poster that made the rounds back in Nov 2011  that Millennium/Lionsgate qualified as a forgery, magically showed up over a week ago in a theater in Malaysia promoting the movie (our friend Patrick posted the story on his website). I don't know who the distribution company for EX2 in Malaysia is but isn't there any coordination with the producers to make sure a forged poster is not used publicly to promote the movie.

Another interesting revelation came after the release of the official teaser trailer where the cast members in the EX2 poster are wearing the same costumes from the trailer. Who goes through all the trouble to steal stills from the movie to forge a poster.

This is what Joblo who initially got their hands on the poster had to say:

"It’s en vogue to say that poster is bullshit or, as Stallone himself put it, “bogus.” Uh-huh. Well, that’s just not the case. I know the poster and where it came from and how it came to us and trust me it’s the opposite of bogus. It may not wind up being used in an official capacity but if that’s the case, it’s only because it was leaked to us.".

The bottom line is, and everyone knows it by now, Millennium/Lionsgate tried to cover their blunder for whatever unknown reason that was disturbing enough to them for having to go through all the none sense to reject the EX2 poster. Who knows maybe they pissed Li's agent off for not picturing him, or Crews or Hemsworth.

The Plot: it goes public in May 2011 with an official tone to it to get rejected by Stallone days later. Then nothing for seven months until the official release of the synopsis in Dec. which oddly resembles the fake plot. A blunder to have released the plot too early assuming that Rourke would join the cast, or didn't Stallone like the plot and wanted to add his own touch to it. Also worth noting that the story was originally supposed to be credited to Ken Kaufman and David Agosto but ended up bearing Stallone's name alone.

The Cast: Millennium publishes the cast for the first time on their website in early Sep. to fans delight just before the labor weekend, pay attention to the order actors were billed - it read as follows: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Scott Adkins. Well if I was Schwarzenegger's, Willis's or Van Damme's agent I would definitely call Millennium and ask them what the heck they were thinking by billing those action icons in the middle of the pack with no special recognition. It only took a weekend for the whole thing to be removed by Monday. Someone must have forced Millennium/Lionsgate to get creative and assign a "with" & an "and" to the two mega stars and invent the "also" for the action legend. Then also Hemsworth comes along and forces Adkins out. 
 
All that being said, it's all behind us and we finally have an official synopsis, an impressive poster, a nice teaser trailer with an extraordinary cast, so we'll forgive the blunders, and thank the creator of the EX2 poster and all the buzz that came with it.

Schwarzenegger's Contest Winner

Two weeks ago Schwarzenegger launched a contest and asked people to submit their own videos on Twitter thanking the American troops. The maker of the best video would get two tickets to be his guest at the premiere of The Expendables 2 in August.

The winner was announced today, here you can see Arnold's video anouncing the winner.

It's worth noting that one of the fans of EX submitted a long video that was a homage to all the action movie actors. He didn't win but for hardcore fans, here's his video.

Congratulations to Brian Pearson the winner of the contest and happy EX2 Premiere.

Filming in China - News Update

According to Ultimate Dolph, Lundgren will leave for China next week on January 10. We can hopefully expect some news on Li and his on set pictures hit the net soon.

 

Update: we know by now Jan 12, that production has moved to Hong Kong instead of mainland China. Lundgren is filming in New Orleans with the rest of the EX team right now and should arrive in Hong Kong around Sunday according to Chinese news sources. Filming is supposed to begin in Hong Kong sometime early next week.

EX2 Characters Screen Time - Full Analysis with Scores

While waiting for some serious news on EX2 which probably won't happen until they resume filming in China in a week or two, we were discussing the importance of each actor's role and the amount of screen time they might get in EX2. It's very hard to guess exactly how much screen time anyone would get, things get cut, edited and re-edited in post production, plus Stallone can be unpredictable at times. So we came up with a simple grading system of 1-10 - hoping the movie is going to be 120 min long - 1 is for 10 min or less and 10 for 100 min or more (make sure to click on the table at the bottom of the page for full results and details).

Stallone (Barney) - he's indisputably the main character, the maestro, the MAN. He should be involved in almost every scene and was on set from the very beginning till the very end. He's also going to shoot in China. His dominance is even stronger this time than in the first movie. Billed as the no. 1 cast in every promotional material vs. "and Stallone" in the teaser trailers of EX1, the main face in every poster vs. always surrounded by Statham & Li in EX1 posters, he runs the show even when he's officially not directing the movie.

Statham (Lee) - he should remain a main character, 2nd in command next to Stallone, but we think his role and screen time are reduced this time in favor of other EX's. He arrived on set a week later than the rest of the EX's and it's not sure if he'll fly to China.

Li (Ying) - his role should be significantly reduced to a mere minor supporting character this time. He didn't film anything in Bulgaria and will only shoot his scenes in China for a couple of weeks at best. Although billed as no. 3, it's probably for commercial reasons. Many think that he'll be the EX to die, we think he'll only participate in the Burma mission and then declines to join the team for Church's mission.

Lundgren (Gunnar) - his role should be much more increased this time compared to the first movie. He was there from the beginning and will also shoot in China. He was also seen in almost all on set pictures that we've seen so far. Most probably the most important character after Statham in the EX team and should participate in all the missions throughout the movie. He's also billed before Norris which says a lot.

Norris (Booker) - initially thought to only have a cameo participation, his role should be bigger than Willis and Schwarzenegger. He arrived on set in early October at the same time than Statham, and stayed for a couple of weeks longer than Willis and Schwarzenegger. There were a few on set photos where he could be seen with the EX team filming in an old eastern European type of town, and he was also part of the airport scenes. He's also said to share a scene with Willis and Schwarzenegger similar to the one the latter had with Stallone in EX1. A minor supporting role but definitely not a cameo.

Crews (Hale) - his screen time should increase this time. He filmed throughout the entire production in Bulgaria, was seen in almost all the pictures even with Van Damme, was at the airport, in the old town with Norris, not sure if he'll shoot in China though. He's also billed before Couture which was not the case in EX1, probably the most important EX character after Lundgren.

Couture (Toll) - he should have less presence than Crews but maybe more than what he had in EX1. He's a probable candidate to die during the mission.

Hemsworth (Billy) - he's probably the EX with the least screen time. He arrived on set a month later that the rest of the EX team, did not shoot at the airport, arrived after Norris left so no scenes in the old town either. We think he's also one of the very probable EX charterers to die.

Van Damme (Jean) - the main villain, he should be one of the main supporting characters. Present throughout the entire production in Bulgaria, it's not clear if he filmed as much as the rest of the cast. He seemed idle during the month of October and his on set pictures only popped up in November. He has a fight scene with Stallone that should be epic. He gets billed with an "also" credit which is unseen before, the fact that the cast is packed with huge names, and "with" & "and" were taken, the casting had to come up with something new and it's called "also". It shows that he still carries some weight and EX2 is giving him the credit he deserves.

Willis (Church) - he has a more substantial role than in EX1, but let's qualify substantial. Yes, it's not a cameo but let's be realistic, he only filmed for 4-5 days. He should have one scene with Stallone where he sends the team on a mission, seen in the trailer, he should be part of the airport fight also seen in the trailer, and he might share a scene with Norris. Other than that he's very unlikely to be seen in any other part of the movie. A minor supporting role is what substantial means relative to what he had in EX1.

Schwarzenegger (Trench) - same as Willis, he could be seen in a scene with Willis & Norris, at the airport and should have a scene during the rescue mission in Burma. He also filmed for 5 days, so the expectation is set, also a minor supporting role. He gets billed with the "and" credit though which sounds like the highest ranking after Stallone, normal given his status and brand equity.

Adkins (Hector) - the right hand man to Van Damme, his role was initially thought to be relatively important but there are doubts now given he's not billed and not seen in any on set pictures that circulated on the net (maybe one or two at best). He might be set to have a similar role to Gary Daniels in EX1, hopefully a little bit more.

Nan (Maggie) - the new EX recruit. She was on set from the beginning, was seen in many on set pictures, she seems to be an important member of the team and fighting throughout the entire mission, she could even be filming in China as she is from there. Her role could be equal to Couture's, she was even seen at the airport scenes, she might exceed expectations in EX2.

Here's a table with the full scores and the breakdown of scenes and who might be part of what. "Maybe" means we are not sure, "maybe-y" means we are not sure but potentiality yes, and "maybe-n" means potentially no. Click on the table to expend for a better view.