When we heard that GI Joe Retaliation was pushed back to May 2013 we were bummed. The trailers did a great job of getting everyone excited about a new GI Joe film, which is a minor miracle in and of itself. The original word was to do a ‘proper’ 3D post convert, which kinda sounded like BS, and it turns out it was.

Deadline is reporting that mediocre to poor test screening results and cold feet from killing off the first film’s star Channing Tatum in the first act are the principal reasons for the delay. Which is funny, because one of the aspects that fans were rallying behind with the new film was the balls to kill of the characters that didn’t work in the first film.

Now we are in an odd place. On the surface, this can be seen as a good move, allowing the filmmakers time to make better a film that many of us were looking forward to. On the other hand, if this is all the work of the studio who wants nothing more than to shoe horn a rising star into a franchise that he already proved ill-equipped to lead, we may have lost something fun.

No one will know for sure until next May, but at the very least this film will go down as an interesting what if moment in film.

Stephen Sommers first GI Joe film was a spectacular miss. It had a lot of the right elements in place, but they just failed to come together in any meaningful way. Thankfully some one still sees the potential in what direction Sommers was taking the franchise.

The sequel GI Joe: Retaliation is on the way and it looks like it excised many of the original movie’s problems, as well as many of the original movie’s characters. Here is the official synopsis:

In this sequel, the G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy Cobra; they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence.

Notice how that synopsis is not very long? This film looks to not be burdened by over complicated plots, and as the new trailer suggests it instead relies on some potentially awesome action. GI Joe works best as a franchise when the action is first and foremost.

In addition to better action the film also boasts a much improved cast, anchored by Dwayne ‘The Rock’  Johnson, who typically excels in these types of roles, and Bruce Willis who is Brice Willis.

Check out the full new trailer after the jump.

As we previously reported, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was in the running to helm Brett Ratner’s Hercules. Now Johnson has officially signed on for the titular role of Ratner’s Hercules film and has also signed on to do an adaptation of the graphic novel Ciudad.

Many fans are excited about the change in career choices that Dwayne Johnson has been making as The Rock is choosing more action films rather than Tooth Fairy 2. With Faster and Fast Five under his belt, as well as the upcoming G.I. Joe:Retaliation and Pain and Gain, Johnson is going back to his action roots for these 2 films.

Ciudad is an action-thriller adaptation of the upcoming Oni Press graphic novel of the same name.

We like to stay on our A-Game when it comes to new films hitting theaters and what to expect from studios on a regular basis. Then a trailer for a film like G.I. Joe: Retaliation hits the web and completely takes us by surprise.

The film picks up the hints from the first film, in which Zartan infiltrates the White House. Remember that? Neither do we. It seems that Paramount, however, does. Here’s the premise to the new film.

Little has been revealed about the plot other than that it will feature the G.I. Joe Team coming into a conflict with Zartan, Storm Shadow and Firefly. Zartan (who is last seen in disguise as the President of the United States) has now got the world leaders all under his thumb, warheads headed towards innocent populaces, and some new heavies on the payroll to keep G.I. Joe at bay.

This time around, we’re getting some new old characters to join the fight, such as Dwayne Johnson as Roadblock, Ray Stevenson as Firefly, and Adrienne Palicki as Lady Jaye. Oh, did we mention that Bruce Willis shows up as John Colton? Yea, we’re as confused as you are.

Take a look at the trailer after the jump, and catch the film in theaters on June 29th.