Statham Back for Transporter 3

It looks like The Transporter franchise is looking to become a trilogy.

Jason Statham has signed on to do a third Transporter film which will shoot later this year in Russia and France. Francois Berleand (The Transporter) and Robert Knepper (Prison Break) have also been cast in the shoot-'em up action flick.

While I haven't seen the first Transporter film I unfortunately had the discomfort of sitting through the horrid sequel. The second film is a total disaster and, while it made $85-million worldwide, it was easily one of the worst films of 2005.



Thankfully Louis Leterrier, the director of the first two movies, will not be returning to helm the third. However, his replacement isn't very qualified either. Fox has named French director Oliver Megaton as Leterrier's replacement. Megaton has done some French TV work here and there and was Xavier Gens second-unit director on Hitman. It'll be interesting to see what the rookie director can do with his first big feature film, although I don't expect much. There has been no word on whether or not Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen will return to write the third film.

I will most likely be skipping this film come its unannounced 2009 release date. The second film was a terrible mess and I have every reason to believe the third will share the same fate.

Am I being too harsh on The Transporter franchise? Post a comment and let me hear all about it.

Cheers.

Subscribe in a reader

FILM: Hitman Movie Cast

The role of Agent 47, the unforgettable character from the Hitman video game franchise, has been cast, and surprisingly it's not Vin Diesel

Actor Timothy Olyphant will play Agent 47. Olyphant is known for his roles in Scream 2, Rock Star, and The Girl Next Door. He also plays the character of Seth Bullock on HBO's Deadwood.

Now, I like Timothy Olyphant but I think he's the wrong choice for Agent 47. The hitman is supposed to be extremely cold, reserved, and precise where Olyphant is known for being a bit, how can I put this, silly. He does have the chiseled jaw found on the video game character and I'm sure he'll look the part when bald, but I can't see him adding much more to the part. It'll be interesting to see where he takes the character but I can't see him in the role, at least as of now.



Dougray Scott (Mission Impossible II, Desperate Housewives) has also been cast in the film and will play a man who's task it is to take down Agent 47.

Another notable is that retired French director Luc Besson (Taxi, The Fifth Element) is producing the film. Now, I'd be much happier if he was directing this adaptation but it's being done by Xavier Gens (Sable noir, Frontieres). I'm not sure if I can put much faith into Gens with this project as he's quite green but I'm excited to see where this film goes.

I don't have high expectations for Hitman, but it should be worth a look.

Cheers.

 Subscribe in a reader