Could this be a blessing in disguise?
The Wrap has dropped dime that Sony, in light of various financial tie-ups with other films (MIB 3D, SPIDER MAN 3), has reached out to Hyde Park Entertainment to co-finance GHOST RIDER 2: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE. The caveat? They’re slashing the mothaf*ckin’ budget!
Word is money allocated toward the sequel has been scalped from $135 million down to $75 million…nearly a 50% decrease. Where now is the hair and makeup department going to find Nicky Cage a nasty new wig-piece?
Comparatively, the first GHOST RIDER movie had a budget of about $110 million. That film went on to gross $115 million domestically (which, accounting for foreign and DVD sales, made it quite profitable).
Okay, is it just me, or does it seem like this could actually be a good thing? Given Neveldine and Taylor’s track record, keeping their sensibilities within the strictures of a smaller production may breed some genuinely cool, perhaps even practical (as opposed to expensive CG) results. More is less sometiimes…who needs a bloated ass budget to make a decent blockbuster these days?
SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE sees Johnny Blaze, aka Ghost Rider (Cage), hiding out in remote Eastern Europe and struggling to repress his curse. Blaze is recruited by a sect to take on the devil (Ciaran Hinds), who wants to take over his mortal son’s body on the kid’s birthday.
Violante Placido, Johnny Whitworth, Idris Elba and Christopher Lambert (still negotiating) are also set to star in the film, which is slated to start production immediately.