RoboCop is coming back to once again protect the streets of Detroit. MGM is set to bring back one of the greatest sci-fi franchises of all time, and they’ve landed one of today’s most visionary filmmakers to direct it.
Deadline reports that Neill Blomkamp is set to direct RoboCop Returns for MGM, a film that will not be related to the somewhat poorly-received 2014 reboot from José Padilha, but will be connected to the original franchise. The film is written by Justin Rhodes, who is reworking an old script for an unproduced sequel penned by original RoboCop scribes Ed Neumeier and Michael Miner. Neumeier and Miner are both acting as producers on the new film, marking their first involvement with the franchise since the lauded 1987 original. The plot for the new film is as follows: Anarchy reigns and the fate of Detroit hangs in the balance as RoboCop makes his triumphant return to fight crime and corruption.
Blomkamp has long considered the original RoboCop to be one of his biggest influences, and he’s looking forward to taking on the political themes and satirical streak in his new incarnation — something that many fans missed in the 2014 reboot. Here’s what he told Deadline about his upcoming take:
“The original definitely had a massive effect on me as a kid. I loved it then and it remains a classic in the end of 20th Century sci-fi catalog, with real meaning under the surface. Hopefully that is something we can get closer to in making of a sequel. That is my goal here. What I connected to as a kid has evolved over time. At first, the consumerism, materialism and Reaganomics, that ’80s theme of America on steroids, came through most strongly. But As I’ve gotten older, the part that really resonated with me is identity, and the search for identity. As long as the human component is there, a good story can work in any time period, it’s not locked into a specific place in history. What’s so cool about RoboCop is that like good Westerns, sci-fi films, and dramas, the human connection is really important to a story well told. What draws me now is someone searching for their lost identity, taken away at the hands of people who are benefiting from it, and seeing his memory jogged by events. That is most captivating. The other thing I am excited by is the chance to work again with Justin Rhodes. He has added elements that are pretty awesome, to a sequel that was set in the world of Verhoeven. This is a movie I would love to watch.”
No word yet on when the film could be released, or if original star Peter Weller will return, but all that matters at the moment is that the RoboCop fans know and love is finally coming back!
