Good news for all of you fans of the XANDER ZONE! Looks like Vin Diesel realized turning down sequels for more quality work landed him in that wonderful category called, "The no interest zone" which is usually a Hollywood killer.
Lucky for Diesel, he's still a draw at the box office and has decided to finally return to the franchises that made him a star:
"XXX: The Return of Xander Cage" is getting off the ground with "Terminator Salvation" scribes Michael Ferris and John Brancato in early talks to write a script that will reunite Vin Diesel with director Rob Cohen.
The writing team, whose credits include "Terminator 3" and the upcoming Jonathan Mostow-directed "Surrogates," began talks after pitching their take last Friday for a new installment in the action series to Columbia Pictures presidents Matt Tolmach and Doug Belgrad.
Producer Joe Roth got Diesel and Cohen to agree to a reteam earlier this year (Daily Variety, Sept. 15). Col moved quickly to lock up the property, getting first look because of its past relationship with "XXX" generator Revolution Studios. Diesel and Cohen teamed on the 2002 original, which starred Diesel as an extreme sports enthusiast drafted by the government for a dangerous mission.
Diesel and Cohen sat out the first sequel, "XXX: State of the Union," which starred Ice Cube and was directed by Lee Tamahori.
The ramp-up on the project underscores increased appetite by studios for branded material. Diesel, who bowed out of two "The Fast and the Furious sequels (save for a cameo in the second installment), reteamed with original co-star "Paul Walker for a fourth film. "Fast and Furious" has been slotted for a June 12 release by Universal Pictures.
Not sure why Variety keeps writing down that he made a cameo in the second Fast and Furious. Unless they mean he made a cameo in the second sequel to the first Fast and Furious. Either way it's confusing and I doubt if the writer has actually seen any of them.
Are you guys ready to enter the Xander Zone? I think I'm gonna say that next time someone wants to fight me. "You messed up now homie. You just entered the XANDER ZONE!" Ya, that actually would deserve an ass kicking.
Kick more than ass when you follow me on Twitter!
