Though a raft of names - even including Mel Gibson - were rumoured to be in the running for directing Expendables 3, recent tweets from Sylvester Stallone indicated he might be looking for a 'fresher' face to take the reins. Well, he's done just that with the annoucement that Australian director Patrick Hughes is likely to be calling the shots. The Hollywood Reporter suggests that no contract has yet been actually signed as yet and that approval has to come from Millennium, the company who has consistently backed the franchise, but it is also suggested this will merely be a formality.
Hughes' previous credits include writing/directing three short films and Red Hill, a 2010 western/thriller about a police-officer (True Blood actor Ryan Kwanten) having to face down a bunch of criminals who come to his small town on his very first day on the job. The film might not have had the most original story, but it got solid reviews in its domestic/Australian run.
This third Expendables hopes to be in production in the third quarter of 2013.
