Mark Wahlberg trying to rally the troops for The Fighter 2

Mark Wahlberg is bound and determined to get THE FIGHTER into the elite class of Oscar-caliber movies that actually spawned Oscar-caliber sequels.

Speaking to EW, he revealed that he wants to take one more shot at Mickey Ward, something that I’m sure not many people expected to hear.

“I got bit by the bug, and now I’m trying to plant the idea in everyone’s head that we should do — not five or six Fighters likeRocky — but one more because the big thing that Micky Ward was famous for was his three epic battles with Arturo Gatti. So we’re talking about possibly taking one more run at it.

Everybody had such an amazing experience making the movie that I can’t imagine they wouldn’t want to go back. But it’s still kind in the early stages.”

I mean, OK…

I don’t know what to think of this. I liked THE FIGHTER, despite the fact I’m not usually the biggest fan of Wahlberg’s acting or O. Russell’s directing, but a sequel? Yes, I’m sure his fights against Gatti were epic, but is there the same kind of drama behind the bouts as there was in the first film? Perhaps, but will audiences still care?

What do you make of this? Should there be a FIGHTER 2?