The Expendables 2While announcements and buzz about the upcoming Expendables sequel have the cast turning over more frequently than a Pillsbury pastry, one recent tidbit of casting news caught our eye.  Millennium Films - the guys putting up the money for the film - had briefly updated the Expendables 2 cast list on their site with two pretty big names in the action genre: Chuck Norris and Jean Claude Van Damme. The site has since removed the updated list and replaced it with a generic "TBA," but not before numerous sites had already picked up on the update.

Now, keeping in mind the fluid nature of the first film's production that saw a constant flux (as well as rumors) of names constantly coming and going, this could all just be a way of blowing smoke up our skirts again to keep us guessing. But this one seems to be pretty solid.

Though Millennium has yet to make an official announcement, the fact that the two action stars were listed alongside the names of the other actors that appeared in the first film makes it feel pretty official to us. Also, the fact that it was quickly pulled down makes us believe some sort of contract issue hasn't been officially signed on the dotted line. In addition to returning stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mickey Rourke, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Terry Crews and Randy Couture, the site also named Chuck Norris, Scott Adkins, and Jean-Claude Van Damme in the cast list.

Van Damme is reported to be up for a villain role in 2, as is Adkins. It's expected that the 71-year-old Norris will only make a brief cameo appearance, however. No further details on Arnold Schwarzenegger's role.

A bit of a spoiler-ish synopsis about the movie has been circulating as well, so if you're inclined, feel free to read it at the bottom of this article (below the graphic).

We likely haven't heard the end of the casting confirmations, however with shooting to begin sometime within the next couple of months and with the film's release on August 17th next year, things will need to be in place fairly quickly. Stay tuned.

The Expendables

The Expendables are back and this time it's personal! After Tool (Mickey Rourke), the heart and soul of the Expendables, is brutally murdered on a mission, his comrades swear to avenge him. They're not the only ones who want blood. Tool's beautiful young and wild daughter Fiona embarks on her own revenge mission, complicating matters when she is captured and ransomed by a ruthless dictator plotting to destroy a resistance movement. Now Barney and the Expendables must risk everything to save her and humanity.