On the tails of a disappointing $35 million dollar intake from theaters for a movie that cost about $50 million to make, ‘Dredd’ fans had little hope of seeing a sequel featuring their stoic hero. However, as is often the case nowadays, massive DVD sales and a huge word of mouth campaign, combined with a petition endorsed and pushed by Karl Urban (‘Star Trek,’ ‘Dredd’), have resulted in numerous rumors of a sequel being in the works. And while questions about any specific details to the weathered actor have usually been met by responses such as, “Sign the petition,” or “…we’re hoping this thing gets made,” Urban opened up recently with a more encouraging answer at Chicago’s Comic Con.
In an interview with ShallowGraves wherein Urban was asked whether any of the dark judges would be making their way into ‘Dredd 2,’ he replied:
“Why yes, there is a definite possibility. But, it is more likely that we will do the ‘Origins’ story with Dredd trekking through the cursed Earth to find the first Chief Judge Fargo.”
With any luck, this could mean that the wheels are in motion on the sequel, and Urban has been privy to the ideas being floated around for the story. And the ‘Origins’ plotline he refers to would be particularly interesting, as it unfurls much of the history of the series through numerous flashbacks, and involves Dredd heading out to retrieve the body of one of his mentors, Judge Fargo, who also happens to be the man who founded the Judge system. While this may sound somewhat similar to the atrocious 1995 film ‘Judge Dredd,’ it seems apparent that the Fargo character (pictured right) and the inclusion of a Dredd trek through the cursed earth will be all that the two films have in common. The producers will surely be wary of any comparison to the former film, which enraged ‘Dredd’ fans for its complete lack of respect for the source comic.
Either way, it is exciting to see this project begin to get off the ground, and being an admirer of the last ‘Dredd’ movie, I am certainly looking forward to seeing the end product.
Source: Cinema Blend