'Atlas Shrugged: Part 2' Gets Teaser Trailer, Release Date & New Cast

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by Kevin Jagernauth
June 25, 2012 1:20 PM
24 Comments

What happens when your first movie dies at the box office, gets savaged by critics and makes barely a blip on the cultural radar? If you're producers John Aglialoro and Harmon Kaslow, you spend even more money on the sequel, cross your fingers and hope for the best.

That's right, even though the poor box office initially had Aglialoro putting the kibosh on plans for any sequels in the proposed trilogy, he quickly changed his mind and this fall the long awaited "Atlas Shrugged: Part 2" will hit theaters on October 12th. The $15 million dollar movie that shot this spring will now have a proper marketing budget says Kaslow, who has enlisted Russell Schwartz of Pandemic Marketing (and previously president of domestic marketing for New Line) to get the word out. He claims that "the industry will take us more seriously" with a better campaign and a 300 theater release, but if the filmmaking is anywhere near the disastrous first film, probably not. But it seems even the enthusiasm behind this project wasn't able to keep the original cast in place.

Taylor Schilling and Grant Bowler probably realized they have better things to do, and this time around, the roles of Dagny Taggart and Henry Rearden will be played by Samantha Mathis (why?) and Jason "Hey it's that guy" Beghe. In fact, pretty much all the major roles have been swapped out with D.B. Sweeney now playing John Galt, Esai Morales as Francisco d'Anconia and Kim Rhodes as Lillian Rearden.

Anyhow, we'll see what Duncan Scott pulls together this fall, but judging by this teaser trailer, it won't be subtle. [THR]

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24 Comments

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Matt Osborne | August 17, 2012 9:15 PMReply

"Atlas" sucked. The best thing about reading Rand as a teenager is her sex scenes, which were entirely missing from the film. It is precisely the kind of Bowdlerized mediocrity that would have inspired Rand to spit out her cigarette and wave a fist in the air. The second installment may exceed the first by actually reaching the rarefied realms of fiasco, but only if it is less nondescript. IMO the films perfectly represent what has happened to libertarian and conservative politics in general.
Mike | July 5, 2012 5:58 PMReply

It's funny how the most hateful comments on Rand come from the welfare recipients sitting in Mom's basement as they type their remarks. Of course they have to protect their source of welfare income so they denigrate Rand in between their visits to the welfare office and disability lawyer. The irony is; the richer Capitalism makes America, the more money exists for them to sponge. The poorer Socialism makes America, the less money exists for them to sponge. These welfare addicts are to stupid and or greedy to even realize that.
Tim | July 18, 2012 11:35 PM

people on welfare generally wouldn't even know who Ayn Rand is ya dummy!

The irony is that the true welfare addicts are, in fact, the rich and they take more money from the gov't than the poor ever will
Zack | July 5, 2012 10:45 PM

Open question: which word does Mike have a poorer understanding of, "funny" or "irony"?
david | July 5, 2012 10:40 PM

What is that based on? Nothing? Thought so. Your implication that all Rand's critics must be on welfare is pretty ridiculous. Just look up a couple anti-Rand articles and google search their authors.
Christopher Bell | July 5, 2012 6:22 PM

Is that really the funny part?

Is it?
Harison Bergeron | June 28, 2012 10:51 AMReply

I recognized everyone in that trailer except for the Russian guy talking to Mike Wallace.
The Limber Mind | August 14, 2012 2:23 PM

IDK but that guy was a jerk.
Bakunin | June 25, 2012 9:40 PMReply

Funny how braindead celebs like Eva Mendes and Brad Pitt glorify Ayn Rand and her selfish philosophy but don't pitch in for the movie LOL
@zack | July 5, 2012 10:25 PM

@Zack - No, he's not. He just said he enjoyed The Fountainhead.
Zack | June 25, 2012 10:46 PM

Jesus, Pitt is a Randanista? If so, he's even dumber than I thought. Anyone who's a Rand fan and a humanitarian didn't do the research on at least one of those concepts.
Steven Flores | June 25, 2012 5:29 PMReply

Why indeed? Please Samantha Mathis, tell us that you did this for the money.
James | June 25, 2012 2:28 PMReply

That trailer was the most unintentionally funny thing I've seen since the Kony 2012 Glee-esque musical number.
Matt N. | June 25, 2012 1:49 PMReply

I LOVE AYN RAND! The first movie was awful, yes, but considering the direction in which the Obama legion is leading this country, I think a second movie is important now more than ever. Atlas is shrugging.
Zack | June 25, 2012 5:16 PM

Sweetie, please explain to me what you "produce", besides exasperated sighs when you start ranting about Mexicans every Thanksgiving.
Matt N. | June 25, 2012 5:06 PM

Zack: Sci-fi? There is nothing sci-fi about "Atlas Shrugged." In fact, Rand predicted exactly the type of collectivist thinking that has taken over this country. Stranger than fiction. And my leaving wouldn't shut the country down. But if we (meaning the producers) all left, you would see the country disintegrate pretty quickly.
Zack | June 25, 2012 4:52 PM

And yeah, I did just comment on a blog. But unlike you, I'm not claiming to be such a big-dicked ubermensch that my leaving the country would shut it down.
Zack | June 25, 2012 4:51 PM

So you went from "braindead" to "letting a sci-fi novel by a social security recipient dictate my ideology". Whew, you sure dodged a bullet.
Matt N. | June 25, 2012 4:32 PM

Jack-After years of being a "braindead liberal" (in the words of David Mamet), the wake up call was reading Rand and having a whole new world open up.
JACK | June 25, 2012 4:25 PM

Matt, you know, somewhere deep down in your heart that Ayn Rand is an imbecile. It's time for you to search within yourself and find this.
Matt N. | June 25, 2012 4:18 PM

Taylor-I have my shit together, thanks to "Atlas Shrugged." And Zack-Didn't you just comment on a blog also?
Zack | June 25, 2012 3:04 PM

Why are all the people who relate to "Atlas Shrugged" the kind of people whose idea of productivity is posting comments on blogs?
Taylor Jones | June 25, 2012 2:55 PM

Oof. Get your shit together Matt; the whole world is watching.
Paul | June 25, 2012 2:18 PM

*facepalm*