Fans were disheartened when pre-pandemic articles began circulating reporting that actor Peter Weller would not be returning to the role of RoboCop for the new sequel rumored to be in production, RoboCop Returns. As de-aging and, in some cases, completely resurrecting deceased actors becomes more commonplace in movies, there is entirely no excuse why the lower half of Peter Weller’s 1980s face can’t be pasted onto another actor physically performing RoboCop’s body in the new movie. The demands on the actor, who is in his 70s, could be incredibly minimal.
Impassioned fans made this point very clearly on various social media posts. Some feel that Weller needs to return to the role, or the film shouldn’t be made at all. To their point, the process would likely require a day or two in an audio booth to record his lines, and RoboCop would be back. It’s about six square inches of human face that need to capture Weller’s likeness so RoboCop Returns can be an authentic sequel.
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In 1987, Paul Verhoeven’s ultraviolent movie about a murdered cop who is resurrected as an unstoppable cyborg, struggling to find his humanity, is one of the pillars of 1980s sci-fi action films that helped to define the era. Those lucky enough to have seen the recent documentary, In Search of Tomorrow, produced by Robin Block and directed by David Weiner, were treated to a five-hour meditation on why 1980s sci-fi is so unique. Along with countless stars of your favorite 1980s sci-fi films, Peter Weller appeared on camera to reminisce on that golden era of cinema. The film explores the various reasons why the 1980s were so creative and liberating for filmmakers and confirms that rather than rebooting beloved films, they need sequels that are very carefully tuned in order to tap back into the heart and soul that made these movies work so well in the first place.
Here’s why Peter Weller is RoboCop.
A Look Back at the Sequels & Reboot
Orion Pictures
Often disregarded more than it should be is RoboCop 2 (1990). The film is an excellent case study for adapting another director’s style. While many would argue that director Irvin Kershner did an excellent job of adapting and improving upon George Lucas’s original Star Wars formula in The Empire Strikes Back, the same could be said for RoboCop 2, which Kershner also directed. While the film may not have pleased everyone, it successfully continued RoboCop’s story. It maintained the gritty level of violence and brutality that fans came to expect from the franchise. It gave our hero Cain (Tom Noonan) a slick new drug-addicted robo-monster to go up against in a metallic brawl of epic proportions akin to a Godzilla movie. RoboCop 2 works.
With RoboCop 3 (1993), The first devastating news was that Peter Weller would not be returning. The next disappointment was the dreaded PG-13 rating. What New Line Cinema released into theaters back in 1993 still brings back traumatic memories for those who held onto hope that our favorite cyborg dark hero would not be destroyed by Hollywood. The film did not live up to the first two films and lacked the heart and soul of what made those movies awesome. It also left the franchise to be stripped away by kiddy cartoons and a low-budget Canadian TV show, none of which was allowed to come close to the gritty tone of the originals.
Unfortunately, RoboCop was targeted by Sony Pictures again for a PG-13 reboot in 2014. The studio seemed to have it in for Paul Verhoeven after having remade another one of his perfect films, Total Recall, for no apparent reason other than brand recognition. It’s possible that the success of Disney’s The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series will help set the benchmark for building upon beloved franchises and films. It turns out that alienating a fanbase by disregarding everything that made them fall in love with the brand in the first place is not the wisest move.
RoboCop Returns
Since we have not heard much news on the upcoming RoboCop sequel, which may have been delayed due to the pandemic, we can only speculate about what may or may not be happening with the film. Still, fans have made it clear that RoboCop Returns is in need of a thoughtful pipeline to resurrect the tone and flavor of the original movie. It happens when every level of design is modeled after the success of the original. From the writing down to the music and editing, there is a style at work that must be adhered to in order to achieve the desired goal. Hopefully, the makers of RoboCop Returns are listening and fully comprehending the task at hand.
