RoboCop (2014)

RoboCop is an upcoming American 3D science fiction action film directed by José Padilha. It is a remake of the 1987 film of the same name and a reboot of the Robocop film series, making it the fourth installment of the franchise. The film stars Joel Kinnaman in the title role, with Gary Oldman as Dr. Robert Norton, Michael Keaton as Raymond Sellars, Samuel L. Jackson as Pat Novak, Abbie Cornish as Ellen Murphy, and Jackie Earle Haley as Maddox.

Screen Gems first announced a remake in 2005, but it was halted one year later. Darren Aronofsky and David Self were originally assigned to direct and write the film, respectively, for a tentative 2010 release. However, the film was delayed numerous times, and Padilha signed on in 2011. In March 2012, MGM announced a tentative 2013 release, but that was changed to 2014. The principal characters were cast from March to July 2012. Principal photography began in September 2012 in Toronto and Vancouver, with additional locations in Hamilton, and Detroit in the United States.

The film is scheduled for release in the United States on February 7, 2014.

Premise
In 2028, multinational conglomerate OmniCorp is at the center of robot technology. Their drones are winning wars around the globe and now they want to bring this technology to the home front. Alex Murphy is a loving husband, father and honest cop doing his best to fight crime and corruption in Detroit. After he is critically injured while on duty, OmniCorp utilize their knowledge in robotics to save Murphy's life. Murphy thus returns to the streets of his city with new abilities and issues a regular man has never had to face before.

Cast

 * Joel Kinnaman as Alex Murphy, a police officer who is gunned down and transformed into the cyborg RoboCop.
 * Gary Oldman as Dr. Robert Norton, the scientist who creates Robocop.
 * Michael Keaton as Raymond Sellars, the villanous CEO of OmniCorp.
 * Samuel L. Jackson as Pat Novak, a media mogul who exercises compelling charm that inspires devotion in others.
 * Jay Baruchel as Pope, the head of marketing for OmniCorp.
 * Abbie Cornish as Ellen Murphy, Alex's wife.
 * John Paul Ruttan as David Murphy, Alex's son.
 * Jackie Earle Haley as Maddox, a military tactician responsible for training RoboCop.
 * Jennifer Ehle as Liz Kline
 * Marianne Jean-Baptiste as Karen Dean, Detroit chief of police.
 * Michael K. Williams as Jack Lewis, Alex's former partner.
 * Douglas Urbanski as Mayor Durant, the mayor of Detroit.
 * Aimee Garcia as a scientist who works with Dr. Robert Norton.

Development
Sony Pictures (Screen Gems division) first announced that it was working on a new RoboCop film in late 2005; no further details were given. In November 2006, Bloody Disgusting reported that the RoboCop remake had been halted.

In March 2008, however, RoboCop was mentioned in an MGM press release regarding franchises it would be developing in the future. An MGM poster displayed at the Licensing International Expo of June 2008 read, "RoboCop coming 2010." The studio met with Darren Aronofsky to discuss the possibility of him directing the film. At the San Diego Comic-Con 2008, Aronofsky was confirmed to direct the "2010 RoboCop" film, with David Self writing the script. However, the release date was postponed to 2011.

At the San Diego Comic-Con in July 2009, MGM representatives stated only that the movie would be pushed back to Summer 2010 or a later date, due to scheduling conflicts with the director (most likely Aronofsky). MGM representatives would neither confirm nor deny if Aronofsky was still connected with the project.

On January 5, 2010 the film and entertainment website Moviehole reported that the RoboCop 2011 remake was indeed on hold and Darren Aronofsky was still attached to direct. However, once MGM executives, particularly Mary Parent the chairperson of MGM, saw the immense success of the James Cameron film Avatar, it was clear to the higher-ups that they wanted a 3D film for the new RoboCop. Due to the financial state of MGM at the time, without an owner, and creative disagreements between the studio and Aronofsky, the film remained on hold.

On March 2, 2011, it was announced that Brazilian director José Padilha was attached to direct, instead of Aronofsky, mainly because of his commercial success with Elite Squad and Elite Squad: The Enemy Within.

On March 11, 2011, Sean O'Neal of The A. V. Club stated that up-and-coming screenwriter Joshua Zetumer would create the script. Although Zetumer had been involved with a number of canceled or otherwise stagnant projects, he had also worked on the screenplay for the blockbuster Quantum of Solace.

Comparing the new work to the 1987 film, Padilha said in 2011, "the environment nowadays is different than the environment in the 80’s and the way to explore the concept is different."

Pre-production
On April 12, 2011, screenrant.com reported on rumors that MGM was looking at A-list stars such as Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp and Keanu Reeves to star in the lead role of Alex Murphy/Robocop in the upcoming remake.

On June 16, 2011, entertainment website Comingsoon.net released pictures of promotional art and a sales sheet from the Licensing International Expo 2011 in Las Vegas, NV promoting a future release of Robocop which would re-invent the franchise. The promotional material had sparse details of the film but clearly stated that MGM is targeting a 2013 release and Jose Padilha of Elite Squad and Bus 174 fame is confirmed as director of the film.

Michael Fassbender, Matthias Schoenaerts and Russell Crowe were considered to play the title role. On March 3, 2012 it was confirmed that actor Joel Kinnaman will be playing the lead role, and on March 9 the film was given a release date of August 9, 2013.

Hugh Laurie was set to play the role of the CEO of Omni Corp on June 13, 2012. However, those plans fell through and he backed away. Clive Owen was in the running to replace him until Michael Keaton was cast in the role in August 2012.

Edward Norton, Sean Penn, Gael García Bernal, and Rebecca Hall were initially considered for the roles of Dr. Robert Norton, Novak, Jack Lewis, and Ellen Murphy respectively. The roles ended up being cast with Gary Oldman, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Kenneth Williams, and Abbie Cornish.

Jackie Earle Haley officially signed on in July 2012 to play a "military man named Maddox responsible for training Kinnaman's RoboCop." Jay Baruchel was confirmed to have signed onto the film on July 25, 2012 as Pope, a marketing exec for the megacompany OmniCorp.

Douglas Urbanski, cast as Mayor Durant, is a non-actor who also is the decades long manager and producing partner of Gary Oldman.

Rob Bottin's original costume for RoboCop was reimagined. Initial reactions were not all favorable and some compared it with Christian Bale's Batman suit in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight films. News reports discussed the new costume's "bionic behind", a "rather derivative" design which "looks more like kevlar body armor than Detroit steel". The Guardian described the new Robocop as "a crime-fighting machine who is not so much cyborg as skinny bloke in matte-black body armour." and said "The new Robosuit has a scaly, insectoid look to it, with a blacked-out visor rather than the original's steel extended helmet."

Production began in September 2012.

Filming
Filming has taken place in Toronto and Ontario. Shooting locations within the city included the University of Toronto where a scene was being filmed that appeared to be Robocop being unveiled to the city of Detroit. Filming in Hamilton began on Monday, September 24, 2012 for five nights. Streets were closed for each of those days from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. The crew built a fake restaurant for a chase scene which is speculated to be the location where Alex Murphy will be gunned down. A spokesperson for MGM confirmed that the film will be partially shot in Detroit.

Music
Pedro Bromfman, who also scored Jose Padilha's Elite Squad films, has been hired to score the film.