For about three years after its release in 2011 Real Steel was thought to be ready to take on a sequel that might see it go in a different direction than the original had left off with. But Real Steel 2 doesn’t look like it’s any more likely to come out than Hugh Jackman is to go back to being the Wolverine again. Of course some fans would like to say never say never, and it’s true that there might be a place for the film to still explore and come to grips with its own universe, which is highly diversified as it was seen between the underground fights and the World Robot Boxing league where Atom finally ended up. But trying to encapsulate everything and come up with a fresh story is part of what kept the sequel stalled for so long and what might keep it on the shelf for even longer, if not indefinitely.
The biggest issues had to do with Hugh Jackman and the director of the film, Shawn Levy, growing so increasingly busy after the movie was released. Both men went on to do other projects that took them away from the idea of Real Steel for a long time even if they were attempting to create a script that would work. The idea of the movie was great, but rehashing the father-son dynamic between Charlie and Max would have to be taken up in a different way or somehow scrapped altogether and given another look. There’s nothing to say that Atom wouldn’t be taking on Zeus again for the title, but it’s also clear that Zeus’ reign was already in trouble once it was shown that the robot was fallible. The chance to take the title would only get harder obviously since Zeus’ handlers would insure that he was tougher, more aggressive, and given more of a fighter’s chance to come out the victor.
This might be a movie that’s better off being left as a standalone favorite simply because it went through the gamut of emotions that came when Max and Charlie were introduced to one another and ran through the emotions involved in keeping the two on speaking terms while nearly performing one of the greatest upsets in the history of movies. Despite Atom not winning the title it was still shown that with a little ingenuity and a lot of heart that the little guy stands as much of a chance at winning as the bigger, stronger contenders do. But in terms of making a second movie it almost feels like it might be too much like the first one, or would be too depressing since it would have to include a lot more details that came from the original that were only shown for a short amount of time. It might be that the original sparked a bit of hope in the pit fighters that they too could take on the real, legitimate contenders in the world of robot boxing.
This could be a moot point however if the movie’s already been shelved. And from the looks of things it might be on its way if it’s not already there.
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