Hard nosed Hollywood investors are likely to want to see big profits from Runner Runner before investing in a Rounders sequel.
Speculation that “Runner Runner” has renewed interest by Hollywood insiders in a sequel to the 1998 film “Rounders” has started, as the first week of the Justin Timberlake/Ben Affleck poker movie takes in $30m at the box office.
In an interview with PokerNews, the writers, David Levien and Brian Koppelman, who also wrote Rounders, and Ocean’s 13 said: “We [...] have the story for “Rounders II” worked out, and all the actors and the director of the first film are ready to come do it. It’s a matter of the companies who control the rights getting behind it and allowing it to happen.”
Hollywood is nothing if not consistent on repeating profitable themes so prospects for Rounders 2 might well depend on how profitable Runner Runner is at the box office. If Runner Runner does badly, the chances of a Rounders sequel could fade.
Though it later became a cult classic that went on to gross $70m from its DVD distribution, Rounders itself was not a great success at the ticket window. However, the film that cost $12m to produce did at least make a profit. Its first weekend receipts of nearly $8.5m outperformed the $7.7m for Runner Runner collected in its opening weekend the US.
Its weak opening performance at the box office coupled with its $30m price tag leaves Runner Runner well short of the necessary earnings to impress cynical Hollywood investors.
Reviews from moviegoers and critics aren’t helping. Movie rating site Rotten Tomatoes states: “It has an impressive cast and an intriguing premise, but Runner Runner wastes them on a bland, haphazardly assembled thriller with very little payoff.” Only 8% of the site’s approved critics gave the film a positive review.
To raise the money for a new version of Rounders, the writers will need a solid sales pitch. The pitch for the Sigourney Weaver blockbuster, “Alien” was famously short: “It’s Jaws … in space.” If Runner Runner fails to make big investment returns, similar lines won’t come off as convincingly, and, “it’s Casino Royale, without Bond” probably won’t swing the deal.
Rounders, along with Chris MoneyMaker’s WSOP Main Event win in 2003, were contributing factors in the creation of the US poker boom; since that boom has faded, poker operators have been dreaming of some equivalent event which could give the market a boost.
