Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson, And Gary Oldman Were Once In The Same Sci-Fi Movie, And It’s A Shame It Never Got A Sequel

The 2014 RoboCop reboot had one of the most impressively star-studded casts of any recent big-budget action movie, and it should’ve been successful enough to launch a franchise. Just over two decades after RoboCop 3 was panned as the worst entry in the RoboCop series (and one of the worst movies ever made), the franchise was rebooted for a modern blockbuster age. Elite Squad’s José Padilha took the helm in the director’s chair, and original writers Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner worked on the script.

Altered Carbon star Joel Kinnaman inherited the lead role of Alex Murphy from Peter Weller and he was backed up by some of the biggest movie stars in the world in supporting roles. It had a whopping production budget to bring the explosive action and futuristic spectacle to life, and a talented crew to pull it off. The RoboCop reboot seemed to have everything going for it — and it was a surprisingly good movie — but it still wasn’t a big enough box office success to earn a sequel.

RoboCop’s Star-Studded Cast Wasn’t Enough To Make It A Success

An All-Star Line-Up Couldn’t Save This Movie

The supporting cast of 2014’s RoboCop reboot features some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Michael Keaton plays the unscrupulous CEO of OmniCorp, Gary Oldman plays the chief scientist at OmniCop who creates RoboCop, and Samuel L. Jackson plays a prominent advocate for mechanized crime control. The movie also has Abbie Cornish, Jackie Earle Haley, Michael K. Williams, and Jay Baruchel. But unfortunately, all this star power didn’t boost it at the box office. It grossed $242,688,965 on a $100 million budget (via Box Office Mojo), meaning it barely broke even.

RoboCop (2014) Had Problems, But It Was A Promising Reboot

It Lacked The Satire Of The Original, But It Was A Solid Action Movie

2014’s RoboCop had its fair share of problems — it’s clear that there was a lot of studio meddling behind the scenes to sanitize the violence and soften the political themes — but it had some really cool ideas and it was a promising reboot of the franchise. The RoboCop redesign was really interesting. It was criticized for taking off his helmet and showing Murphy’s face, but that allowed Kinnaman to really connect with the audience in the role.

The biggest problem with 2014’s RoboCop is that it lacks the satirical intent of the 1987 original. 1987’s RoboCop is a lot smarter than it seems; it uses its story of a megacorporation creating an obedient law enforcement machine to critique capitalism, authoritarianism, and corporate greed. That satire is mostly lacking from the RoboCop remake; it’s just a straightforward sci-fi action movie. But there’s no denying that it’s a solid action movie.

Source: Box Office Mojo

A remake of the 1987 film of the same name, RoboCop tells the story of a robotically-enhanced police officer. Set in 2028, RoboCop sees Detective Alex Murphy injured in the line of duty. His life is saved by an experimental procedure which enhances him, making him a cyborg capable of pushing back against the tide of crime threatening to wash over his city. 

Director

Jose Padilha

Runtime

121 Minutes