Back in February, Paramount Pictures handed over the reins of its sequel to 2009’s G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra to director Jon Chu. Given that his most recent directorial efforts (the last two installments in the Step Up franchise and Justin Bieber: Never Say Never) are predominantly dance-driven, Chu may seem like a less than obvious choice to lead the action-packed material G.I. Joe 2 will undoubtedly contain. Aesthetics aside, in a recent interview the director addressed several questions regarding his take on the film, including the hesitation some may have towards his involvement, saying:
“So going into this, of course they’re going to have their opinions. But I don’t think they’ve heard my voice yet in movies…I’ll never claim to be the greatest auteur of all time and I’ll never claim to know exactly what I am doing, but I know I love movies. And when people cheer when the hero comes on and boo when the villain comes on, there’s an energy that I love about that. And Joe, to me, it’s just natural extension of the symbol of a hero.”
To check out more of what Chu had to say regarding the film’s overall progress, shooting it in 3D, and playing with G.I. Joe toys as a kid, hit the jump. Paramount will release the G.I. Joe sequel on August 10th, 2012.
In discussing the progress he’s made on G.I. Joe 2 thus far, Chu tells Box Office Magazine:
“We’re just beginning it. We just got the deal done, so now I get to get my hands dirty; this is the fun part, where we get to do pre-vis, to design characters, design worlds and literally the things I would create in my backyard.”
When asked directly about his feelings toward shooting the film in 3D, the director showed support for the technology, saying:
“I really want to do it in 3D, but the decision hasn’t been made yet. A lot of factors that go into that, which I think it’s good to have a big discussion about. I think it’s going to be perfect for it, but there are other factors that are built into it—how it slows you down, things like that. But I could try some other things if it wasn’t in 3D; it would change my whole view of how I would make this movie, so we’re trying to figure it out.”
Much like many of those who will pay to check out the film when its released in 2012, Chu dialed-up a sense of nostalgia when discussing how he used to play with Joe toys in his youth:
“I was always a fan of Joe. I grew up with Joe. I had all the toys and I had epic adventures – they’d be burned, they’d be in mud, they’d be hidden in the couch. I loved them. I’m convinced I learned the beginning of my storytelling from playing with toys, no doubt. And it’s hard for me to put down any filmmaker’s work because I know how hard it is to make a movie, and I never want to do that; just to be able to get it done is an incredible feat in itself. But there’s something about G.I. Joe that has history, that has a soul, and there’s very few brands have a soul. Like the Boy Scouts has something to do with America, even Mickey Mouse, even Apple has a soul to it. And Joe has a soul. And I’ve never felt like I’ve had a movie of Joe of where I can taste my childhood right there.”
Of course, these are just a few excerpts from Chu’s interview. If you want to check out it out in its entirety, make sure you follow the Box Office Magazine link above.
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