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Neill Blomkamp Wants Peter Weller For His RoboCop Sequel
RoboCop Returns director Neill Blomkamp wants original star Peter Weller back for the new movie. The original RoboCop from 1987 is rightfully considered a classic of the sci-fi genre and added a futuristic twist to the Frankenstein story. The movie managed to blend action, satire, horror and a host of other genres seamlessly, but both sequels would prove disappointing. Director Paul Verhoeven stepped away from RoboCop 2, which has some inspired moments and action sequences, but lacked the wit and intelligence of the original.
RoboCop 3 made the ill-advised move to make the series more kid-friendly by watering the violence down for a PG-13 rating as well as giving RoboCop a jetpack and a kid sidekick. Weller opted out of the third movie to work with David Cronenberg on Naked Lunch and was subsequently replaced by Robert John Burke. A RoboCop remake starring Joel Kinnaman arrived in 2014, but despite a great cast and director, it also went the PG-13 route, and the satire felt somewhat toothless; a planned sequel failed to appear.
Fans of the series got excited when it was recently announced Neill Blomkamp had come onboard to direct RoboCop Returns, which will be a direct sequel to the 1987 movie. The story will be based on an unused draft for RoboCop 2 from the original screenwriters Michael Miner and Ed Neumeier, and now Blomkamp has confirmed his ideal pick for leading man on Twitter.
If RoboCop Returns is going to be a direct follow-up to the first film, it makes sense to have Weller reprise the role. Weller has remained active as an actor, and is also a prolific television director, having worked on shows like Sons Of Anarchy and Justified. Of course, he's currently 71 and may not necessarily be interested in coming back to what he’s admitted was a physically demanding role. That said, fans would love him to see him back, and there would be something poignant about seeing his version of Murphy 30 years later.
RoboCop Returns will be the next in an increasing line of legacy sequels, such as 2018’s Halloween and Terminator 6, which pick up the storylines of the original movies while ignoring later sequels. Those sequels also feature the return of original stars, like Jamie Lee Curtis and Linda Hamilton, which have become selling points themselves. Time will tell if Blomkamp is able to secure Weller for his sequel, but it certainly seems like he’s the natural first choice.
