Update: Empire got in touch to tell us that an error had been made in their original piece, and that Owen isn't yet confirmed as coming back. That's not to say he won't be involved, but nothing seems to be certain yet. We've all been there.
The pieces are starting to come together for (deep breath) "Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame To Kill For." Following the events of the first film, and/or occuring concurrently, the production has already confirmed the return of Mickey Rourke and Jessica Alba, and here comes one more. The character of Dwight will apparently re-appear, with Clive Owen reprising his role from part one. We recently asked Owen about his involvement, and he was cagey in his denial, though it does appear the project has only recently begun to take shape.
Speaking to Empire, who say that Owen is onboard again, director Robert Rodriguez claims he's going to take this effort farther than the original, as far as fidelity to the source. “I really held back the first time, because I didn’t know whether audiences would go for it," Rodriguez says. "So it ended up looking like a real movie, but in black and white, with a few flourishes. This one is going to push way further towards the books. It’s going to shock and surprise people.” Considering portions of the first film feel xeroxed from the original pages, we're a little dubious about this. Hopefully he can blind us with the inclusion of new cast members, as he says he's currently speaking with "seriously big names" for pivotal roles.
He wouldn't confirm whether one of those names was Angelina Jolie, however. Jolie has long been linked to the role of the "dame" in the title, Ava Lord. Rodriguez was tight-lipped, claiming. “It’s a great part for any actress. She’s completely diabolical with no mercy. She’s as evil as evil gets.” Rodriguez surely has time to court the Oscar-winner, as the film has a release date of October 4th, 2013.
But first, Rodriguez will essay "Machete Kills." He claims a synopsis leaked online is a complete fabrication, stating, “That synopsis we put out is misdirection — it’s all fake. Machete is recruited by the President, that’s true, but there’s no cartel leader and the weapon in space is just one of our early story ideas." But the sci-fi elements are certainly present, with "Machete Kills In Space" still rumored to be where this franchise is headed. "There is still a space element, for sure. We’ve given the character a much bigger playground. It’s going to be like a James Bond movie, with a Bond-style villain.”
He's got Danny Trejo, Jessica Alba and Michelle Rodriguez, joined by newcomers Amber Heard, Demian Bichir, Sofia Vergara and, as the villain, Mel Gibson. Rodriguez claims he's been chasing Mad Mel for awhile. “Mel’s just a badass,” Rodriguez says. “We have the same attorney and we’ve talked over the years about stuff we’re making." This apparently won't be the usual mustache-twirling baddie, which is coincidentally the type that Jeff Fahey and Don Johnson played in the original "Machete." "This won’t just be him grinning, doing bad-guy stuff. He’s going to do something with it that’ll really get people talking.” Maybe it involves drunkenly abusing the mother of his child? "Machete Kills" reportedly shoots this spring.
Jolie won't be doing this. She's already evil in Maleficent and it looks like she only signs on for lead roles nowadays.
Cheap shot at Mel Gibson.
If Clive Owen did return, he'd have to be all prosthetics-ed up as his story in the first movie takes place after all the others in the series that he appears in & it's established that he's recently gotten back into town "with a new face" in the first movie.