Ever since it was announced earlier this year that Sylvester Stallone would not be returning to direct The Expendables 2, fans have wondered who would take over helming the ensemble action sequel. Today, Deadline has the answer, announcing that Simon West will be calling the shots this time out.
West is best known as the director of Con Air and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. He recently directed the remake of The Mechanic (starring The Expendables‘ Jason Statham) and his next, Medallion, re-teams him with Nicolas Cage.
Though Stallone is currently the only confirmed member of the sequel’s cast, it is likely that much of the first film’s talent will reprise their roles along with a few new surprises.
Stallone co-wrote, directed and starred in the first film, which earned $274.5 million in theaters worldwide last year and also starred Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts, Randy Couture, Steve Austin, David Zayas, Giselle Itie, Charisma Carpenter, Gary Daniels, Terry Crews and Mickey Rourke.
