It may have been nine years since Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story hit theatres but 20th Century Fox is ready to bring us the sequel as they have moved forward with the project today, bringing Clay Tarver on board to write the script for what is currently titled, Dodgeball 2.
Grossing $167 million worldwide, on a budget of $20 million, the decision to produce a sequel is an easy one. If you don’t recall, the first film followed gym owner Peter Lafleur (Vince Vaughn), “who wants to stop a rival gym run by the mean White Goodman (Stiller) from taking over. In order to get the money to stay open, Peter and his Average Joe gym members enter a dodgeball tournament with a hefty cash prize.”
A sequel has been discussed for a while now but nothing ever really came of it. Now, with Tarver on board, things look like they are finally coming to fruition. Admittedly, this thing is still a long ways off. There’s no cast or director attached yet but Stiller and Vaughn are likely returning to reprise their roles. After all, the film wouldn’t really work without them. Plus, the premise is said to revolve around Peter and White teaming up to fight what is being described as “an even greater nemesis.”
As for Tarver, his biggest credit is co-writing Joy Ride with J.J. Abrams, though he does have a couple scripts currently in development. Personally, for me, as long as Stiller and Vaughn return (which I don’t see why they wouldn’t) then I think that this one will be a hit.
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story is a hilarious film, one that offers a ton of laughs. The two leads (Stiller and Vaughn) played off each other wonderfully and the whole experience was just really enjoyable. Though it may be too soon to tell, I have full faith that they can re-capture the magic of the first film and make Dodgeball 2 a success.
