Back in January there was a kerfuffule of fan annoyance over reports that, at the behest of Chuck Norris, Sylvester Stallone was aiming the Expendables sequel at a PG-13 certificate from the MPAA. AICN however, picked up rumblings from Stallone a couple of weeks ago that an R-rating was back on the table for Expendables 2. And speaking to Empire over the weekend, Dolph Lundgren confirmed that he's been hearing the same thing.
"I heard that it's now R again," says Dolph. "Stallone's basic setting is to make it very violent. That's just in his personality, and if it was me I would do the same. I guess the producers figure they can make another $50m if it's PG-13, and if it was my money I might say the same thing! But I think for the fans, if it's tougher it's better."
Chuck had apparently complained about the R, saying that he "doesn't make films like that anymore" and earning some concessions from the production. But, Dolph reveals, it's actually a moot point for Norris, who has his own unique way of making his films accessible anyway.
"Chuck likes to re-cut all of his films before he shows them to his kids," grins Dolph. "He told me he has his own editor. So it's irrelevant! He could make it a G-rating if he wanted to!"
We'd prefer to believe that Chuck Norris is so tough, he shoots the offending frames right out of the film with an AK47.
Expendables 2 of course, stars Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jet Li, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Randy Couture, Terry Crews and Liam Hemsworth alongside Stallone, Norris and Lundgren. It's directed by Simon West, and is out in the UK this summer.
Watch this space for lots more from Dolph...