The cast list for The Expendables 3 has expanded almost as much as Sylvester Stallone’s biceps, what with Milla Jovovich in talks, Wesley Snipes and Jackie Chan confirmed, and rumors abounding about Steven Seagal. But one of the most persistent rumors has been about Mel Gibson. Well, now we have – kind of – confirmation that ol’ Mel will indeed be appearing in The Expendables 3 … as the villain.
That’s right. The man who was totally not OK for The Hangover Part II due to the whole anti-Semitism and misogyny thing might very well be heading over to The Expendables franchise as the premier baddie. Will the public accept him more readily as a villain than as a hero? Given the guy’s current difficulties, probably so.
Casting Mel in The Expendables 3 is less of a crazy move than it might appear. After all, he’s trying for a resurgence, what with his part in Machete Kills. And since he’s not exactly a fan favorite at the moment – which is entirely his fault – giving him a villainous role will probably make his presence more acceptable to a lot of people.
This continues to be mostly rumor and conjecture, by the way, but Showbiz 411 seems convinced by their unnamed source. Sylvester Stallone has been mostly spreading casting rumors and confirmations via his Twitter account. So far he’s silent on this one, but given that the Mel rumor has been around for awhile there’s a good chance he won’t be silent much longer.
Despite my reservations about Mel Gibson personally, I would not mind seeing him get another chance professionally. He used to be a good actor, before he went insane, and if the villain in The Expendables 3 fits, then why the hell not? He’s totally more of a badass than Chuck Norris, and you can’t get more 80s action hero than Mel.
The Expendables 3 is set for release in August 2014. Maybe we’ll actually know the full cast by then.
