Men in Black III is in production and set for a 2012 premiere, complete with original stars Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. This will be the third installment of the alien action-comedy series, which will see its release almost 10 years after Men in Black II, and 15 years after the original Men in Black (MIB) motion picture.
The original stars of the first two Men in Black films are likely to be on board for their roles in the new installment. Will Smith, who remains one of the most bankable movie stars ever, has already signed on to play Agent J. Tommy Lee Jones is in negotiations regarding compensation for his role as Agent K. Josh Brolin from Milk will also reportedly star in the film.
Barry Sonnenfeld will be back for a third round directing the film, and the screenplay will reportedly be written by Etan Cohen, who already has one action-comedy behind his belt in the form of Tropic Thunder.
Men in Black III is slated to come out on May 25, 2012 and is to be featured in 3D.
Sony subsidiary Columbia Pictures will be producing Men in Black III, as they did the first two installments of the series. The latest Men in Black flick will be a new chapter in the adventures of the MIB secret society of special agents protecting the earth from an omnipresent alien threat.
The last two Men in Black films saw success both among the critics and at the box. The first Men in Black was released in 1997 and made a cool $589 million, while Men in Black II came out in 2002, still pulling in more than $440 million—an impressive achievement for a sequel.
The name Men in Black was adopted from a comic book of the same name, which in turn references the “men in black” of UFO conspiracy theory lore. UFO sighting rumors in popular culture are rife with reports of men in black suits who harass those people claiming to have seen the encountered aliens or UFOs.
The production of Men in Black III is yet in its very early stages.
