After Stephen Sommers (thankfully) left the
GI Joe franchise, Paramount has been on the search for a new director. One of those rumored to be in talks for the job is John Chu, who has recently taken on a couple rather....questionable projects:
Step Up 3-D and the Justin Bieber bio film
Never Say Never. MTV recently caught up with the director and were able to ask about these rumors.
"I don't know," Chu laughed when we asked if there was any truth to the rumors connecting him to the "G.I. Joe" sequel. "I mean, I don't know what goes on inside the doors of Paramount, but I'm up for a bunch of different projects."
I guess that is neither a confirmation or a denial. But despite his history in films, Chu is a fan of the GI Joe franchise, among other fan-boy (or girl) favorites.
"'Joe' is something I've loved since I was a kid," he told us. "I still think there's a movie out there that can be done for the real 'Joe' fans, the one we've been waiting for that hasn't been done before."
"My era was 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,' 'G.I. Joe' and 'Transformers,'" he continued. "When 'Joe' changed their theme song from the old style—'Go Joe!'—to 'Got to get tough, go Joe!' That was the era I was in. Those are the fun, glory years that I remember."
Additionally,
MovieWeb conducted an interview with Jon Chu and they've asked him how he'd approach the project if given the chance.
"I think we've been waiting for the Joe movie that we've always wanted, but have never gotten. I think there is an opportunity to do that. For me, with dance and choreography, it's about a love of movement. I feel like using movement in a story, especially in terms of action, you can do a lot with that. If I were ever lucky enough to get that, it would be pretty awesome. But the one thing I felt was missing from the last Joe movie was the power of the punch. You want Joe to be tough. They are fun, but they are tough. I feel that you don't want to make Joe too kidsie. That is one of the issues they are having."
It is the
MovieWeb interview that makes me think that Chu has the job in the bag, so make sure you click these links and check out the full interview. It's always a plus when you find out that a director has a passion for the project and its characters, sho he has that going for him. Not to mention that who ever steps into the role of director, they couldn't do any worse that Sommers did...right?