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Mark Wahlberg hasn't been shy about his desire to make a sequel to last year's The Fighter, the Best Picture-nominated drama based on the life of boxer Micky Ward. The producer/star has happily discussed [2] the potential for a Fighter 2 in the past, and director David O. Russell seems on board with the idea as well -- he's already expressed [3] his interest in writing the script. Now it seems likelier than ever that The Fighter 2 may become a reality. At a recent awards show, Wahlberg said something that suggests that the film is on track to actually get made. Read his words after the jump.
While accepting an award for The Fighter ("Guy Movie of the Year") at the Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards, Wahlberg seized the opportunity to talk up a Fighter sequel:
We left out the Arturo Gatti fights for a reason, cause that's for Fighter 2. We're not gonna do Fighter 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, but we're gonna do 2. We're gonna do the Ward/Gatti trilogy.
Here's the video:
The "Ward/Gatti trilogy" that Wahlberg's referring to is a series of three fights from the early '00s that are considered boxing classics, and that really made Ward's name as a boxer. Ward won the first fight in 2002, while Gatti took the second, also in 2002. In 2003, the two men met for their third and final match. Gatti broke his hand during the fight, but was able to carry on and eventually emerge victorious. Badass.
Actors talk up potential sequels all the time [4], of course. But Wahlberg was the producer and really one of the driving forces behind the original Fighter, so I'd assume that he actually knows what he's talking about here. As a critically acclaimed, fact-based, offbeat little drama, The Fighter doesn't necessarily seem like the kind of film you'd expect to get a sequel, but I'm not complaining. It definitely sounds like there's enough material for another couple of stories, and the characters and universe are rich enough to sustain another film or two.
Wahlberg didn't mention during his Guys' Choice acceptance speech whether we can expect to see any of the cast and crew return from the first film. Given Russell's intention to write the script it seems he'll be involved in at least some capacity. Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Amy Adams all played major roles in The Fighter and received Academy Award wins (Bale and Leo) and a nod (Adams) for their trouble, so I'd imagine they'd be open to the idea of returning. Wahlberg's said [5] before that he "can’t imagine [the cast] wouldn’t want to go back." We'll keep you updated as more news is announced.
Discuss: Would you see a Fighter sequel?
[1] http://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/Mark-Wahlberg-in-The-Fighter.jpg
[2] http://www.slashfilm.com/the-fighter-sequel/
[3] http://www.slashfilm.com/david-russell-write-the-fighter-sequel/
[4] http://www.slashfilm.com/indy-5-shia-labeouf/
[5] http://www.slashfilm.com/mark-wahlberg-training-preliminary-talks-sequel-fighter/
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