MAGIC MIKE XXL has already begun production but a few more actors have joined the cast which, despite losing Matthew McConaughey, still boasts Channing Tatum, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Kevin Nash, and Adam Rodriguez. Alex Pettyfer will not be back, but Andie MacDowell, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Amber Heard, and now Donald Glover and Elizabeth Banks will be.
We also have the official synopsis for MAGIC MIKE XXL which somewhat follows the tidbits that Tatum has been sharing since the first film was released.
Picking up the story three years after Mike bowed out of the stripper life at the top of his game, MAGIC MIKE XXL finds the remaining Kings of Tampa likewise ready to throw in the towel. But they want to do it their way: burning down the house in one last blow-out performance in Myrtle Beach, and with legendary headliner Magic Mike sharing the spotlight with them. On the road to their final show, with whistle stops in Jacksonville and Savannah to renew old acquaintances and make new friends, Mike and the guys learn some new moves and shake off the past in surprising ways.
While I had zero interest in the first film, I was surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it. The characters were actually interesting, more when they had their clothes on than off. MAGIC MIKE XXL actually sounds much more interesting to me as a film than the first one did. Here's hoping Steven Soderbergh as director of photography lends some quality to this production.
MAGIC MIKE XXL hits theaters on July 3, 2015.