Outside of Rocky and Rambo, one of the movies that we at 3DJuegos cherish the most from Sylvester Stallone is Demolition Man. After all, this action and science fiction film managed to combine action, science fiction, and comedy equally with several memorable scenes that allowed the actor to shine and prove that he was more than just a tough guy. Despite being a box office hit at the time, a sequel was never seen. Why?
Indeed, many of those involved in that cult film from 1993 have not hesitated over time to show their willingness to return to that world where all restaurants were called Pizza Hut (Taco Bell in the United States). For instance, in 2006, Sylvester Stallone expressed interest in making a sequel to Demolition Man while also stating: “But I think the ship has sailed and maybe I have other challenges waiting for me.”
Stallone sued Warner Bros. over the movie
But why was a sequel not made then? There is no official answer, but we do have a fact to mention: Warner Bros. and Rocky’s actor ended up in court over the movie. Stallone filed a lawsuit against the studio claiming he had not received a significant portion of the film’s profits in 2017, in a dispute that was amicably settled between both parties, but possibly reflected some historical tension between them.
Demolition Man (Blu-ray) [Blu-ray]
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Another reason, perhaps the most obvious one, is that in the 90s it was not as common to make sequels just for the sake of it. There were sequels, and many, but not as many as now, and it was possibly preferred to focus on new stories within the genre, even if it meant relying on the same actors as always. However, we do know that at least an idea for a sequel was considered, one that could have featured Meryl Streep as Stallone’s daughter thanks to the power of the script.
As you all know from watching Demolition Man, the movie is about how a Los Angeles cop is frozen in 1996 alongside a terrorist, Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes), and they wake up almost 40 years later, in 2032. This premise could have allowed us to see Stallone at the same age as a supposed daughter that was never explored enough in the original cut but that was somehow present in the script for some time.
Meryl Streep, the key attraction for a sequel
According to Daniel Walters, the film’s screenwriter, Joel Silver became interested shortly after its release in this discarded plot to develop a sequel: “I got a call from Joel and he said, ‘What do you think? Meryl Streep is Stallone’s daughter in the sequel. What do you think?’ I replied, ‘Okay, if you bring Meryl to the set, I’ll go’.” Of course, it didn’t happen, and it makes us wonder if it was Streep who completely rejected such a proposal, preventing us from seeing a Demolition Man 2.
It is very common for movies to be made with the allure of having a certain actor in them, so convincing Meryl Streep to play Stallone’s daughter could have possibly unstuck the project and allowed us to revisit this world where you were fined for swearing that bet on Arnold Schwarzenegger as President of the USA years before the star decided to make the leap into politics as the Governor of California.
However, there could still be an opportunity for a sequel. In 2020, once the aforementioned litigations were resolved, Stallone mentioned he was working with Warner Bros. on a sequel. Nothing more has been said since then, but in an era of reviving classics like Beetlejuice, why not? Meryl Streep could still play his daughter! In the meantime, we invite you to watch Demolition Man directly through Movistar Plus+.
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