Update: Dwayne Johnson has tweeted out a first look at him in his full gear as Roadblock in “G.I. Joe 2: Retaliation.” Filming starts today, check out the pic below.
The best way to amp up your sequel so that people forget the first film? Step up that cast. At first, when cast defections left Dennis Quaid, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Marlon Wayans, Sienna Miller and Rachel Nichols out of the picture, it looked as if the next “G.I. Joe” film was going to reboot the cheap way. But after adding Bruce Willis, Dwayne Johnson and Ray Stevenson, consider us impressed that the Joes certainly have some heavy hitters on their roster this go-round. And now, none other than Cletus Van Damme himself, Walton Goggins has joined the production.
The Emmy-award nominated Goggins, who was unjustly snubbed by that institution for his often-stirring work on “The Shield,” is set to play Warden Nigel James, which seems disappointing, since we loved researching names like Quick Kick and Hi-Hat, or whatever these wacky characters call themselves. We can’t find anything on this Warden, so we assume he’s tied into the superprison that encased Cobra Commander in the last film. Then again, the original subtitle “Cobra Strikes” was changed once it was announced Gordon-Levitt wasn’t returning to the role, so it’s anyone’s guess who he’ll play. IT’S A MYSTERY.
Goggins is one of our favorite character actors, so even if this isn’t exactly something that will stretch his acting talents, it’s still a nice paycheck for the “Justified” star, who stole the show in “Cowboys And Aliens” and will likely do the same in this fall’s “Straw Dogs,” while also gaining visibility in a key role in next year’s “Lincoln.” Goggins joins that murderer’s row of Willis, Johnson and Stevenson, as well as series lead The Channing Of Tatum. Also in the cast are Adrianna Palicki, RZA, D.J. Cotrona, Elodie Yung, Lee Byung-Hun and Ray Park. Plot details are under wraps for the July 29th, 2012 release but, hm, it might have something to do with punching, kicking and other forms of fighting.
