Image Credit: Jeff Vespa/WireImage.comSeveral moviegoers — $492 million-worth of moviegoers worldwide, that is — hopped into theaters to enjoy this year’s Clash of the Titans, happily ingesting an action film whose schlocky special effects were pleasantly nostalgic, even if the flick was victim to such flaws as shoddy character development. (Said EW’s own Owen Gleiberman, “All you can really do is sit back, enjoy the expert hamming of pros like these, and wait for the cheeseball F/X wonder.”) But now, with Warner Bros. planning a sequel, it looks as though we might have to trade in those cheeseball effects for a richer sequel experience. Because not only has the studio wisely planned to shoot Clash 2 in 3D — the first film was widely criticized for being converted after filming wrapped — but the studio has also confirmed to EW that it has handpicked a buzz-worthy new director, Battle: Los Angeles‘ Jonathan Liebesman, to helm the follow-up. (Louis Leterrier, the director of the first film, dropped out of the sequel.)
Let’s get one thing out of the way: The guy’s cute. (And totally looks like he should be cast as a hopelessly romantic average Joe on a single-camera NBC sitcom, no?) But another bonus: He’s attracting a lot of attention for his work helming the Comic-Con hit Battle: Los Angeles, which, according to The Hollywood Reporter, proved that “he could handle large-scale action and intense visual effects.” Yes, most of us haven’t seen more than two seconds of Battle: Los Angeles — and Liebesman’s 2006 horror film, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, was more than a disappointment — but based on those two seconds, it’s hard not to wonder whether Clash 2 can manage drop the schlock and actually kind of look — gasp! — awesome.
Anyone else finding themselves a bit excited about Clash 2‘s new director?
Read more:
Sony releases two seconds of ‘Battle: Los Angeles’
‘Clash of the Titans II’: director of the first one opts out of sequel
I’d like to say it can’t be worst than this year’s Clash, but experience tells me worse is often easier than better with sequels.
Is the sequel going to be good? No.
Wow, another easy question!
Does its being “Good” matter? Not really. It’s an adaptation of one of the crappiest, campiest movies ever made. It just has to be fun.
It isn’t an adaption of anything it’s a sequel to an adaption.
The 2010 version wasn’t fun, neither the original Clash one of the crappiest movies ever made.
this makes no sense haha
I wouldn’t describe the special effects of the new “Clash” as shlocky…in fact, I thought the main reason some people didn’t like it was because the effects were sleeker (and more soulless) than those of the 1981 original.
Ugh the reason I hated the sequal had nothing to do with the less than awesome special effects and had everything to do with the plotholes, worthless characters and the complete destruction of the actual myth (Way to go romancing Perseus with his Great Grandmother…thanks for scarring me)
As my sister said, they could have all of the greek monsters in this sequal along with Godzilla and King Kong and you still could not pay me to see it.
What if they throw in Optimus Prime and The 50 Foot Woman in a battle to the death atop the Empire State Building? Ah? Ya love it, right?
I have hope that the sequel will be entertaining. I didn’t hate the re-imagined “Clash”, I just didn’t like the lousy 3-D conversion. Liebesman also directed a 2003 horror movie “Darkness Falls,” which was fairly suspenseful for a PG13 horror pic.
It is possible for a sequel to be better than the original, so let’s hope that this will be the case because the Clash of the Titans was a HUGE let down.
I just saw this movie, and I have to say I had a blast. Maybe it’s a Sunday afternoon, too hot to be outside kind of movies, but whatever. Fun is fun.
As someone who enjoyed the first Clash for the campy crap it was (and I saw it in 2D, thank you), here are my minimum expectations:
1. Get rid of or drastically reduce the role of Gemma Arterton. She was the most annoying thing about the first one.
2. Actually give Sam Worthington something to do besides stand there and scowl.
3. Pick a myth and stick to it. Greek mythology is full of movie-ready plots and stories without you having to butcher them.
The re-make sucked and the sequel will suck. And no one has seen Battle: Los Angeles so how can hype build off of that? As stated in the article, his completed film, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre (blah, blah, blah) was terrible. So, no is the answer to your question.
I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt over the Texas Chainsaw prequel. If we wrote off every director that did a bad/cheesy first movie, or had done schlocky horror, we wouldn’t have guys like James Cameron or Peter Jackson. Bill “Gods and Monsters” Condon directed a Candyman movie, for pete’s sake.
That guy’s cute? Hmmm. He looks like the guy Miranda dated in that one Sex & the City episode who had an, ummmm, glazed donut problem.
Ewwwww no he does not! He is so much better looking than that guy.
Oh, is Sam Worthington in this? Then, yes, I will see it. If we can somehow get Mads Mikkelsen back in the sequel I might see it in 3D.
I think maybe I’m the only person who enjoyed the schlock! LOL!
People, if we stop seeing this crap then Hollywood will no longer have the money to make sequels of the crap.
The Clash remake was not a good movie, but no one expected an oscar worthy title. If you did, then you shouldn’t be watching movies. It was just a mindless special FX and action flick. Plus, the original Clash was not a good movie. I don’t know why people expect the remakes to be amazing.
Because it’s based on a series of ancient myths that have proven worthy for many centuries. Also the original wasn’t crap. If they’d just remade that story, with minimal tweaks to Perseus’ camp the film would have been infinitely better.
Ifthey’d just told the original myth it would have been far better too. It didn’t have to be a mindless effects movie, they chose to turn it into one, then did a rush “3D” conversion in hopes of salvaging the mess they’d made. It worked, bescause people thought the film would be good entertainment so paid to see it. ?Those that paid to see it twice and are buying it now are hard to understand.
CotT2 can’t help but be better than the first one. That’s it default setting!
Liebesman joining the project is a good start, but even a competent director won’t be able to save a movie if the script is crud. Let’s hope he ends up with a crackin’ script that tops this summer’s remake (which I did see & enjoy at the theater). Oh, and I loved TCM:TB!