G.I. Joe Sequel Dubbed Retaliation by Director Chu

Almost a month after Rhett Reese's confirmation that the upcoming G.I. Joe sequel would not be titled G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes, director Jon M. Chu confirmed the new title, via Twitter, as G.I. Joe: Retaliation.

"Shooting film for GI JOE: RETALIATION. Yes film. Not video. I could smell the emulsion at today's test :) :)"
Besides confirmation of the title, the G.I. Joe 2 family has been buzzing on Twitter with posts that include training photos, personal messages and subtle hints about casting. To stay on top of the latest sequel news, check out our Twitter list, a comprehensive tweet steam of all the cast and crew of G.I. Joe 2.

G.I. Joe Fan Film Trailer Strikes Sequel Director's Facebook Wall

With rumors swirling about characters, cast, plot, release date and even the title, there is one constant when it comes to the follow-up to G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra--die hard fans are hoping this big-screen adaptation of G.I. Joe stays true to the original canon. If the anticipated June 29, 2012 release date of Paramount's sequel has you itching for a dose of Joe in the meantime, check out the trailer for the upcoming fan film Operation: Red Retrieval, directed by Mark Cheng. The short trailer showcases an authenticity and action-style G.I. Joe enthusiasts have been yearning for since their disappointment with The Rise of Cobra. In fact, someone even posted the trailer's YouTube link on sequel director Jon M. Chu's Facebook wall. For additional footage and details on Cheng's promising endeavor, visit Operation: Red Retrieval's official site.

G.I. Joe 2 Adds Stevenson as Cobra Villain Firefly

Jon M. Chu's G.I. Joe sequel has its first new villain. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Ray Stevenson has been cast for the role of Cobra saboteur Firefly, in G.I. Joe 2. Stevenson joins Byung-hun Lee, who will reprise his role as Storm Shadow, as the second confirmed member of the Cobra team. Actors Sienna Miller and Joseph Gordon-Levitt who played Cobra villains Baroness and the Doctor, respectively, in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, will not be back for the sequel. It's unknown if Christopher Eccleston will return as Destro. G.I. Joe 2 begins filming at the end of the summer and is scheduled for an August 2012 release.

G.I. Joe 2 Casts Lady Jaye

It didn't take long for Flint to get his Lady Jaye. Days after the announcement that D.J. Cotrona signed on to play the role of Flint in the second installment of G.I. Joe on the big screen, Deadline.com is reporting that Adrianne Palicki will play Flint's love interest and covert operations specialist Lady Jaye. Palicki was tapped for the starring role in the Wonder Woman television series, which shot a pilot, but wasn't picked up by a network. Deadline.com is also reporting that the original G.I. Joe, Joe Colton, is rumored to have a role in the film and rumblings are that Bruce Willis is a favorite for the part.

G.I. Joe 2 Producer Talks Plot

G.I. Joe 2 producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura revealed some details about the upcoming sequel's plot to MTV News, at the New York City premier of Transformers: Dark of the Moon, on Tuesday. According to di Bonaventura, the film will center heavily around ninjas and the story of Snake-Eyes. "The ninja fans are going to love it," he said. Di Bonaventura also confirmed that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's character Roadblock will have a prominent presence in the film, qualifying the part as a "full-on lead role." Despite rumors of friction between di Bonaventura and Paramount Pictures caused by the studio's handling of the next installment of the franchise, di Bonaventura appears to be pleased with the direction of the sequel.

Two More Actors Join G.I. Joe Sequel

Rapper-turned-actor RZA, of Wu Tang Clan fame, and D.J. Cotrona are reported to be the newest additions to director Jon Chu's G.I. Joe sequel, according to HollywodReporter.com. RZA will play ninja trainer Blind Master, who made a brief appearance in Marvel Comics' A Real American Hero series and who's protege is Jinx, while Cotrona will dawn the special forces beret of warrant office Flint. Earlier today, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson confirmed, via Twitter, that he has officially signed on to play the role of heavy machine gunner and cook Roadblock. We smell what's cookin'!

Jinx Cast for G.I. Joe Sequel

Several media outlets are reporting that 30-year-old French actress Élodie Yung has been tapped to join the cast of G.I. Joe 2. According to the sources, Yung will play Arashikage Clan ninja Jinx, in the Jon M. Chu directed sequel. We speculated on the role, last month, after a cryptic casting call for a female named A.C. began appearing on a number of talent agency Web sites. Yung fits the casting call's requirements, but if that isn't enough evidence, Chu, himself, took the the social networks re-tweeting several messages mentioning Yung's hiring via his twitter account.

Even More G.I. Joe Movie Casting News

Multiple sources are reporting that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is in discussions to appear in the G.I. Joe movie sequel, Cobra Strikes. According to Deadline.com, Johnson would be cast as heavy machine gunner Roadblock. While Paramount and Johnson negotiate the details of his services, ComicBookMovie.com is reporting that IMDB is confirming (you'll have to pony up for a subscription if you want to verify the information) Stephen Martines for the role of Cross. It's widely assumed that Cross--as noted in the casting call--is Cross-Counrty, the country music loving driver of the H.A.V.O.C.

More G.I. Joe Sequel Casting News

Filtering through the Justin Bieber tweets in Never Say Never director Jon Chu's Twitter-stream makes it particularly difficult to spot G.I. Joe news, but we found an interesting exchange directed at Chu from former WWE wrestler Shad Gaspard. Gaspard, who's Twitter username is @Shadbeast, sent two messages to Chu, @jonmchu, on May 14 introducing himself, linking to his IMDB demo reel, and noting he auditioned for a role in Chu's upcoming movie. The next day, when asked, by one of his followers, what movie the audition was for Gaspard replied "it's a military film, one I'm really excited about." Chu has yet to publicly respond to Gaspard, but we suspect the audition was for a role in G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes, which Chu is directing. There was no mention of the role for which the 30-year-old, six-foot, six-inch Gaspard was auditioning. Chu is in New Orleans preparing to start filming.

G.I. Joe Movie Sequel Casting for Jinx?

According to disney-channel-auditions.com, a casting call has been issued to place a 20-30 year old, athletic Asian female for a lead role as a ninja-in-training in G.I. Joe 2. The character's name is listed only as A.C. We did a little filecard sleuthing to see if we could verify the initials as being Jinx, but the name is classified on all filecards. There are some comic references linking Jinx to the name Kimi Arashikage, cousin to Storm Shadow, making here a member of the Arashikage Clan. Could A.C. be a veiled abbreviation for the Arashikage Clan in order to keep the character's identity a secret?

Image Credit: Joelist

Cobra Strikes or Cobra Strike?

We have to admit, Examiner.com's article Jon Chu discusses 'G.I. Joe: Cobra Strike' has us miffed. The article's author, Brandon Jones, refers to the upcoming G.I. Joe movie sequel as G.I. Joe: Cobra Strike despite conflicting reports that the title is G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes. We've requested clarification. In the meantime, it's worth noting that Jones quotes Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner as saying the sequel would not be a complete reboot, but that it would feature a story that didn’t require any knowledge of the previous installment.

And the Title to the G.I. Joe Sequel is... G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes

After announcing that the sequel to G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra was set to begin production in Louisiana, state officials quickly retracted their statement--at Paramount Studios' request--saying only that the studio was seriously considering the pelican state. The reason for the retraction isn't clear, what is clear is that the sequel has been given a tentative title; G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes.

Cobra Strikes is set to begin a five-month shooting stint starting in New Orleans on August 1. The sequel returns Channing Tatum and Ray Park, who will reprise their roles as Duke and Snake Eyes, respectively.

SOURCE: NOLA.com