An ‘R.I.P.D.’ Sequel Is Happening For Some Reason…No Ryan Reynolds Or Jeff Bridges, Of Course

There are plenty of terrible comic book movie adaptations out there. Count 2013’s R.I.P.D. as one of the worst. Starring Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds as agents in the Rest In Peace Department, they are essentially lawmen who fight supernatural enemies. Directed by Robert Schwentke (who would later go on to destroy the Divergent franchise and direct a bad Snake Eyes movie), the film was a massive dud for Universal, earning just $78M on a budget estimated at nearly $150M. So…why is there a sequel happening all of the sudden?

The MPA ratings board [via BloodyDisgusting] has given a PG-13 rating to R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned, a straight-to-digital sequel to the supernatural action-comedy, to be released by Universal Home Entertainment.

Do I even need to say it? No, Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges are NOT returning. Nobody from the original movie is.

The unexpected sequel has Paul Leyden behind the camera. He recently directed Malin Akerman in 2020’s boxing comedy Chick Fight. Andrew Klein (MacGyver) wrote the screenplay.

So who’s starring in this thing? Richard Fleeshman (Netflix’s The Sandman), Jake Choi (Single Parents), Kerry Knuppe (Ratched), and Stephanie Levi-John (The Spanish Princess) have taken over, but the exact nature of their roles is unclear. Are they playing versions of characters we’ve already met?

The best thing about this news? I got to go back and revisit our then-writer Roxana Hadadi’s 0-star review of R.I.P.D., and that makes me happy. You should read it, too.

 

Travis Hopson
Travis Hopson has been reviewing movies before he even knew there was such a thing. Having grown up on a combination of bad '80s movies, pro wrestling, comic books, and hip-hop, Travis is uniquely positioned to geek out on just about everything under the sun. A vampire who walks during the day and refuses to sleep, Travis is the co-creator and lead writer for Punch Drunk Critics. He is also a contributor to Good Morning Washington, WBAL Morning News, and WETA Around Town. In the five minutes a day he's not working, Travis is also a voice actor, podcaster, and Twitch gamer. Travis is a voting member of the Critics Choice Association (CCA), Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA), and Late Night programmer for the Lakefront Film Festival.