Law & Order star Jeffrey Donovan takes over for Jeff Bridges in the prequel set for a Nov. 15 release.
Truth to tell, the supernaturally charged action-comedy R.I.P.D. wasn’t warmly embraced by critics or audiences during its 2013 theatrical run. Despite the star power of Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges, the movie failed to draw a substantial number of ticketbuyers with its fantastical scenario about the Rest In Peace Department (R.I.P.D.), an otherworldly agency that employed such undead law-enforcers as a recently deceased Boston cop (Reynolds) and a long-dead Old West sheriff (Bridges) to corral human-disguised demons haunting the entire planet.
But a funny thing happened on the road to total obscurity and WalMart bargain bins: Over the years, R.I.P.D. gradually developed, if not a full-blown cult, then enough name recognition through cable, streaming and DVD/Blu-Ray to make production of a sequel seem like a sound investment for the bean-counters at Universal. Provided, of course, the sequel would be a far less expensive product designed for home-screen consumption.
Strictly speaking, R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned — set to premiere Nov. 15 on digital platforms, DVD/Blu-Ray, and Netflix — is more of a prequel than a sequel, in that it focuses on the early undead career of Sheriff Roy Pulsifer, the lawman portrayed in the 2013 flick by Bridges. In the new film, a younger Sheriff Roy is played by Jeffrey Donovan of TV’s Burn Notice and, more recently, the Law & Order reboot.
Here’s the logline:
The Wild West has gone to Hell, literally, and the world’s best hope of being saved lies in the gun-slinging hands of Sheriff Roy Pulsipher (Jeffrey Donovan) as he becomes the newest officer for the Rest In Peace Department (R.I.P.D.) enforcing the afterlife’s laws. If the Old West was wild while he was alive, wait until Roy sees how weird it gets once he dies. Roy thought joining the R.I.P.D. would give him a chance to revisit his daughter and solve the mystery of his murder. Instead, he has his holsters full with havoc and hellfire when he’s given a mission to stop a dangerous demon from opening a portal to the underworld. The fate of the living and the dead now depends on Roy and his partner Jeanne (Penelope Mitchell), a mysterious swordswoman, as cowboys clash with creatures and undead insanity unleashes apocalyptic chaos.
And here is the attention-grabbing trailer.
