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Universal Has Wanted Sequel Already in Development!

by Alex Billington
June 19, 2008
Source: Pajiba, MTV

I just returned from a screening of Wanted earlier tonight and I couldn't be more excited to report back that this movie kicks an immense amount of ass. So much so that I want to see some sequels right away, as was the exact feeling I had at the end of Iron Man. There is no easy way to put it - Wanted surpassed all of my expectations and has the potential to become an amazing franchise. On that note, I'm also happy to report that it seems Universal is as confident in this film as I am excited and has already been working on sequels for quite some time. In fact, the writers, Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, first mentioned that they had already been hired for the sequel way back in September of last year. Now Terence Stamp also chimes in to confirm that he's already planning on returning for more. Excited?

In an interview with Pajiba last year, screenwriters Derek Haas and Michael Brandt told them that they have "been hired to write the sequel to Wanted by the same studio." That news meant nothing back then because I didn't know how truly incredible the film would be, which is why this has all become oh so relevant right now. In addition, Terence Stamp very recently told MTV that his character will return as well. "I play a character who's called Pekwarsky. He's an enigmatic character who doesn't feature a lot in the first one, but it's something that's written for a sequel." It's definitely true that a sequel has possibly already been written or at least is already in the works at Universal.

I won't dare spoil anything about the character of Pekwarsky, but let's just say that the ending certainly leaves open the possibility of a sequel. In fact, this could instantly become a franchise, only as a trilogy, however. We can't forget that Wanted is based on Mark Millar's comic of the same name. That comic is a mini-series that only ran for six issues from 2003 to 2004 under Image Comics. It's a self-contained story and doesn't really need to run on forever. After seeing Wanted, I could definitely see a very strong story put together involving James McAvoy's Wesley Gibson character that would span two more films and finish in one epic finale. He's a character that really only has one life - and that's not a spoiler.

Haas and Brandt, who wrote 2 Fast 2 Furious, Catch That Kid, 3:10 to Yuma, and are currently working on Spy Hunter and The A-Team, really showed their ability to write a strong action script with Wanted. The film kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time, unlike Iron Man. Robert Downey Jr. carried that film along with it's great story, but in Wanted it's director Timur Bekmambetov's talents combined with Haas' and Brandt's story that really made this movie so entertaining from start to finish. I'd love to see them finish off a trilogy and I'm already anxious to see this story continue on! Keep up the great work Haas and Brandt!

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Related categories: Hype, Movie News, Opinions

http://www.drduvel.net Dr.Duvel

"There is no easy way to put it - Wanted surpassed all of my expectations and has the potential to become an amazing franchise" And you see nothing wrong with that statement ? "... amazing franchise" "... franchise" got it now ? McDonalds is a Franchise. Lets leave the "... no respect for the moviegoing public/squeeze every last penny out of them" attitudes to the bloodsuckers in the Board rooms eh ? Write me a story, turn it into a movie. If it looks any good, I'll pay you money to see it. If you have another good story make another one. If it concerns the same characters, lets call it a sequel. If it still looks any good, I'll pay you some money to see it. Once you start calling it a Franchise, and I get any whiff you are trying to exploit me or a favoured concept, you get nothing. Star Wars was a great movie. It is now a franchise. It is now shit. We, as movie lovers, must oppose franchisement and exploitation of good base material in every way possible and that includes you Mr. Billington. Franchise My Arse.
James

I have always been confident about this movie. I don't think it will let me down. and universal is spelled wrong in your title.
http://www.modelmayhem.com/kevjohnphotography kevjohn

I like the new spelling better.
Drake

wow, wanted is going to be better than iron man. Oh yes and this film is rated R as well, so there would be no screaming kids sitting next to me.
Garrett.king

well in that case, Quanah, Star Wars is a FILM. Wanted looks like shit in every commercial/trailer I've seen for it. I'm not excited, plus Angelina Jolie as The Fox? HORSE SHIT. Has anyone even read the graphic novels or are you just going based on being pulled in by the shitty commercials? This film isn't going to surpass Iron Man, it doesn't have the marketability. Dream on.
http://movieguyreviews4u.blogspot.com Ryan

Im seeing it tonight and am psyched.
Quanah

Eh-em, Dr. Duvel: You seem to be confusing films and movies. Wanted would definitely be a "movie", as would Star Wars. Out of Africa would be a "film". Movies become franchises. Films become historic.
Elroy

Who is Pekwarsky? I don't remember him being in the comic? So he can't be that important of a character. "Kill one, save a thousand" that is the quote I keep hearing in the ads. I thought that they could do whatever (kill anyone that they want to). I also heard that none of the super-villains show up in this movie, so how good can this movie be?
Nick

Really? Really? Alex, what exactly about this movie "kicks an immense amount of ass." You wrote this "review" but then did not say in your "review" why you like this movie. This seems to be a trend in your endless hyping of mediocre to down right awful movies. You say it's the best thing you've ever seen but then have no basis for your reaction. And you call yourself an entertainment journalist? Back to "Wanted." The trailers make it look like some sort of adolescent videogame gun fantasy which borrows way too much from the Matrix. They removed the superhero plot, but kept the superpowers. The most interesting thing about the comic was that the villains won. And that's the part that gets cut? Why even bother calling it Wanted? It has nothing to do with the comic that it bought it's title from.
Curtis

hmmm... seems like this will be a lot better then i expected i wasn't even gonna see it in the theaters but now i think i will.
ha1rball

evryone who says this movie is dumb or looks dumb are idiots! i watched it yesterday and it made me feel the same way The Matrix made me feel when i saw The Matrix for the first time. I'm not saying it as good as the matrix but damn this movie ROCKED!!!
Dusty

WOOHOO... I LOVE THIS SITE... then again, i could just be all those that bash the reviews... cause I have yet to see ANY journalist review or promotion of a film (or movie, WHATEVER, get to that in a moment) that doesn't have a 50/50 split on the people that gripe about their reactions and those that love them. But then again, I am trying to read into everyone's comment and figure out how many of you have seen the film in a screening as well to combat his statement of it being an amazing film... WAIT that is right.. THIS IS NOT A REVIEW... this is an article about a sequel coming out.. and Alex stated that he loved the film... he does not need to give a reason... he stated he liked in support of his article about the film sequel. But who knows... maybe you are right Nick#9, maybe he was not objective in his presentation of this film in this article.... WAIT... yep.. just clicked through a bunch other sites... and YEP... bunch of opinions across the bored. I am sure when the review comes out.. Alex will present the film's plot, characters, graphics, etc. and give us the good and bad... after reading many of Alex's articles on here I have come to realize that when a movie "Kicks ass" for him, it means the actions is great and nothing jumped out to say WTF was that crap. About Movie vs films.... WHATEVER... none will be films shortly... all going digital baby... WOOHOO... About Franchise... honestly #1 Duvel, I have loved reading your comments and visiting your site a couple times, and this is the first time that I think you are off base.... Then again, maybe you didn't like the LOTR and Spiderman and... well either way... I guess it is just a word... and Marketing folks like me care about how people perceive words... And if you think that Hollywood is alive because of the ART... well not going there, but lets say that celebrities ask a lot for a film for a reason... IT IS A BUSINESS. DAmn I wrote a lot for no reason.. I know everyone knows all this... Then again, I thought that everyone stuck to the rules and never deviated from source material to make a great movie/film and had people that just loved it ... well just BECAUSE. Hope everyone loves the summer and fall of comic book blockbusters, make sure to read up so you can gripe about how much they screwed up your comic books themed and plots ... Because how dare they(hollywood) try to make a film so that my 8 yr old son could fall in love with the characters you read about.
Dusty

OOPS... wow... sorry Alex.. that was TOO MUCH WRITING... comments justt got lot longer.
Nick

First of all, this site is barely entertainment journalism. The press releases are one thing but the comments from the site contributors are laughable. The best entertainment "journalists" express an opinion but they do it with (sometimes) reasonable reasons for their opinion. Actually entertainment journalism would just be reporting on the news of the entertainment industry, which the press release posts do just dine. It's the commentary that is not even remotely journalistic in nature. On this site everything is AWESOME. I would be ok with having a somewhat forgiving nature for hollywood big budget crap, but when EVERYTHING is reviewed positively you begin to wonder the validity of the reviews. Even Hancock, a movie that initially, was not liked on the site, has now come around to being a MUST SEE. But if he is going to provide an opinion I would like some sort of reasoning for the opinion. Furthermore the overwhelming sentiment on this site is that EVERY SINGLE MOVIE IS AWESOME. It's hard to consider an opinion when it never changes. It's like the boy who cried wolf. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if this site is underwritten by the movie studios due to the overwhelming positive nature of all the content. Dusty: I hope you're not taking your 8 year old son to Wanted which is an R rated movie with a crazy amount of violence. I never said changing the source material should never be done. I merely said this movie has no business being called Wanted because it goes so far away from the source material it's ridiculous. I complain when they change the story of the source material for no apparent reason because it shows a complete lack of respect for other creative individuals. And if you want your son to see a comic book movie there are plenty of PG options. Are you advocating watering down source material to reach all audiences? Would the Godfather be a better movie if your 8 year old son could go see that?
http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington

Nick, I don't know why it is SO HARD for you to believe that we're not underwritten by movie studios and are completely run on my own passion and appreciation for movies! I'm sorry that you simply cannot enjoy movies the way I can, because honestly, yes, I do go see every movie and like MOST OF THEM! I have an appreciation for cinema, even if it's mediocre. However, I do hate SOME things, for example The Love Guru! You can go read about that here in an article I wrote yesterday. The other reason why it seems like I only ever post the good things is because everything I hate (e.g. Love Guru) I feel doesn't deserve to be featured here and doesn't deserve my time... Hence why that post yesterday about Love Guru was the first I wrote in a long time about that movie because I think it looks fucking terrible. And as soon as I write it, people go off bitching me about all kinds of other stuff on how I can't have a negative opinion. I just can't win with you guys! My point is, to me, I do this for passion for movies, not for journalism. All I'm doing is writing about movies I love and that theatrical experience that I can't get enough of...
Dusty

hmmm... yep.. trying to find a poitn to make Nick... hmm.. nope at a loss Wait... an idea came to me, I see how the next movie will rollout, I think this is the name and synopsis. "Wanted: A Different Story" Synopsis: After the amazing success of the 2008 COMICBOOK-BASED film, "Wanted", Universal has decided to release another fantastic ComicBook-BASED film. This movie does not follow the storyline of the comicbook, instead follows the character in NEW exciting adventures. These movies are a tribute to the comicbook and its originators, but able to stand on it own through solid plot and character. WAIT... Nope that will never fly... too many fanboys would hate to see their characters stories changed for the masses. Did I mention COMICBOOK-BASED... BASED... BASED... a tribute to the source is not one that has to be the original source Sorry Alex... I am just filling these comments up today
PimpSlapStick

Yeah...I'm not gonna waste a penny on this movie, it'll be on cable in a couple of years. Why adapt something and not stay true to the source material? I'm not asking for Eminem as Wesley or Halle Berry as Fox, but this in no way looks like the comic I read. This could have been massive, I superhero movie where the super villians won. Now it's some mumbo jumbo morality play with Matrix special FX. Pass
alan

oh com on people just go see wanted plzzz comonnnnn wall e look out im warning pixar this will spoil the week for you wanted will rock after what i just read on this sit im there hey they would not make sequel for nothing you know com on
Dusty

I am glad they deviated from the source on this one... I just don;t think anyone, but the fan boys, would have been interested in seeing the villians in the FIRST movie.. this first shot at it is to introduce Wesley... I see the followup movies being AMAZING.. and yes I said Followup MOVIE'S'... I think it is wise move to keep this one simple this time.. introduce too many characters like Shitface and The Imp and we will lose the public.... Build a story they like in a huge action flick then introduce the crazy 'new' world they live in in the second movie. We will see.. I am pumped
D

The comic was great. This looks like dog turds.
Nate

I don't understand all the bashing this movie is getting. Seriously I think people should lay off and calm down about the whole "it's not true to the original" bullcrap. Mark Millar said himself that he likes the movie. Can't really argue with the genius author when he wrote the damn original. So damn, give it a chance?
alan

thanksss nate exactly stop bashing the movie when the original damn ass author sad he like it so stop bashing and judging the movie on the trailer what you want to see the whole movie in trailer's honestly people use your damn ass brain don't jude it by the trailer plzzz give it a shot
Josh

I get it. I know what you're thinking. "Oh great. The stupid fanboys are going to complain again because every little detail in the movie isn't EXACTLY like it was in the comic book. GOD! Can't they get a life? Can't they understand that some things just don't translate well to the big screen? Can't they just enjoy another great looking action film?! GOD! It's got guns, it's got car chases, its got MORGAN FREEMAN, and it's got Angelina Jolie half naked!!! What's wrong with that?!!!" You want to have another mediocre action film? That's fine. That's great. But don't give me McDonalds and call it fine dining! Those of us who complain about this piece of crap know about comic-book to movie transitioning, we know about mainstreaming, but this goes FAR beyond that. This is taking someone else's idea and turning into something completely different. By watching this movie, you're telling movie execs they can take anyone's idea and change it however they want to make a good movie. They're changing the whole premise! they're taking away it's heart and soul! But no, it's fine. You can take an idea and fuck it up all you want just as long as it's got cool gun battles and hot chicks. That's what really matters. So it looks like a passable movie. So what? Is it okay for someone to take your idea and change it however they see fit merely for their gain? Wanted will be like every other movie when it could have been something different and beautiful. You want fancy gunfights, go watch Shoot em up. You want Angelina Jolie naked? Go see Gia. You want Morgan Freeman? Go see like, any other movie ever. Seriously, he's in everything.
Josh

Oh and Dusty, this is by no means a tribute to the comic book. This is a movie compant's idea of taking someone else's idea and making money off it. That's all.
Garrett.king

Hey. I don't need EVERY little thing to be exactly like it was in the comics or novels. If I did I wouldn't've liked Hellboy or any of the Harry Potter movies (which at the moment the only one I hate is Order of the Phoenix, that's not important here.) But I would like it to keep to the spirit of the story. That's all I'm asking for, and the spirit wasn't maintained, or at least doesn't appear to be maintained. Of course any one would like to see any incarnation of their story wind up on big screen. And sure, while the fan boys are the ones complaining, we're the ones that would've brought even more people in to see a movie that was closer to the book, and we're now the ones telling people to stay away. I may rent it..but don't count on it.
Kat

***************possible spoilers********************** Well it's out.... Echooo echoooo. Really, it's 5am and I can't believe I read through all those posts.... Did anyone see it...????? I can fully understand being pissed when they take a source material, model a movie after it, the movie ends up being completely different, and they still call it what it departed from on page one.... but there is no way in God's green earth they could get away with releasing anything close to the original material. It would have to be NC-17. I haven't read it, but cuss words for names and the main character rapes and kills innocent people? Sht, it was hard enough to pass an R rating through Hollywood's gotta-make-this-pass-this-for-the-money-I-mean-the-widest-demographics. Perhaps they should have changed the title though. It's still not reality-based, but OMG did this movie kick so much ass. Wes hits a guy with his keyboard and knocks out the f the u the c the k the y the o and one of the guy's teeth as it flies across the screen. And it's got one of the BEST shoot out scenes I've ever seen in cinema. Oh there will be plenty for people to gripe about, so Josh, see it on DVD. And they have to have a sequel, for many many reasons. One of which being the same as Alex's reason, but this is by far the best movie this year, and frankly, I've seen it five times and it's still pretty addicting. PS. Great score too and PLEASE watch the behind-the-scenes on You Tube!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They actually sit in the car as it's being flipped and James is *really* just resting on a car before jumping off and shooting the hell out of shit (no cables), then jumping off and running after ..... some guy.... It's FUN and f---king INSANE. ***************possible spoilers**********************
adam

everyone is looking way to into it, who cares if it doesnt follow the graphic novel it was a kickass movie and i saw it twice already and i dont have to give a reason because the movie speaks for it self kickass movie 10/10
Niki

I just watched this movie today and it was AMAZING. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Sure, I'm only a teenager, but I know a good movie when I see one and this movie is near the top of my list. And all you people talking about it ruining the comics, listen to Dusty! It was BASED on the comics, and this first movie was an introduction of the plots and characters to come in the sequels. No movie nowadays fits the book/comic exactly anymore. You'll always be disappointed if that's what you expect everytime. get over it, and actually WATCH the movie. You'll really appreciate the work. This movie is brilliant. And I LOVE the score, the music is amazing and it fits the movie perfectly. I can't wait to watch it again and again. Kudos to Haas and Brandt! You guys do excellent work every time.
Luke Anderson

Dr.Duvel, The movie is based off of a comic book. The comic book is a franchise, Thus meaning the movie is also part of that franchise. Kay, Thanks.
kaz

Let's make a Wanted movie, because comic-to-movie adaptations are hot now. Next, let's scrap the whole premise of the source material and give them Matrix meets Fight Club.
http://cmblake6.wordpress.com cmblake6

Personally, I thought "Wanted" was stone ass awesome! I saw it in the theater, I IMMEDIATELY bought it when it came out on dvd, and I was screaming at the end for a sequel! I'd do the same with part deaux as I did with #1. Awesome!
BdoubleD

you guys are all gay. who ever takes the time out of their day to bitch about a movie when everyone involved in the movie is making millions is retarded. move out of your moms basement, quit jackin it to porn, get out and do something with your life. wanna show everyone what a real movie is? come up with your own concept and make your own. see how far it will go. these guys are in it for the money, who could give a fuck about the origin and what was involved in the comic books. "arguing over the internet is like being in the special olympics, no matter if you win or lose, you're still retarded"
Makus

IN the sequel they should get another girl, an actor in the movie, an actual black chick also named Cat but she can be from another Fraternity. I think Angelina Jolie's role was good and all but she really was not needed in this. Now the sequels does not have to be exactly like the comic but they could make it more like the comic and still make Westly a likable Protagonist. What I would like to see is more threating villains and less average villains like Sloan. I want to see Westly actually put the suit he had in the comic on, I also want to see some superpower villains, and make the script a little better. So my thing is let Angie and Morgan stay dead don't bring them back at all. Bring new faces on the screen and better story like amp up the action and let it go from there.