Paramount has had nothing but trouble with their G.I. Joe franchise so far. The 2010 film was directed by Stephen Sommers, and with the nostalgia craze in full swing, plus a big name star in Channing Tatum, it should have been a surefire hit. And yet it wasn't, despite making just over $300M. That's what happens when a franchise flick costs over $200M. With that one mostly going down the drain, they still eagerly jumped into a sequel, feeling confident in the direction of Jon Chu and the additions of Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson to help bring in the big bucks. With the film just a few weeks away from opening, the Internet cracked in half when Paramount announced suddenly that G.I. Joe: Retaliation was being bumped to March 29th 2013, with the reason given that they just wanted to a little 3D post-conversion.
Hey, it makes sense. The film would have been an afterthought in this crowded summer season, and 3D would certainly add the value of higher ticket prices. Johnson came out the next day and said that reshoots were definitely taking place, and now we're learning from Deadline that those scenes aren't just to take advantage of the technology, but to fix what test audiences say is a glaring weakness in the story.
Apparently, Paramount got a little worried when audiences noted that they wanted to see more of Tatum and Johnson on screen together, and is rushing back to fix that right now. Oh, and they also add that audiences wanted 3D, which to me sounds like hogwash. Whatever. Anyway, clearly it's a move that makes sense from a business perspective. It's been one of the worst kept secrets that Tatum's Duke character would be taking a dirt nap in the the first few minutes, which was a surprise considering his popularity. The combination of Johnson, Willis, and Tatum makes for a powerful trio with a lot of box office pull.
It's clear that Paramount has made some colossal missteps with the film, but they're going out of their way to fix that. They don't want to see another big budget flop like Battleship or John Carter. Fortunately, G.I. Joe isn't nearly as expensive as those films were. I expect that the sequel will be in a much better position to succeed when it finally opens next year.
The question now is how this will effect Tatum's character? Will he not be killed off now? Maybe he'll simply be captured or presumed dead only to return later? Surely they aren't going to completely write off the guy after he's had a pair of $100M+ grossing hits this year already, with another one potentially in Magic Mike?
