GHOST RIDER Sequel Set for February 2012 Release, Filming Rumored to be Underway

The cast and crew have supposedly landed in Romania to begin production on the Ghost Rider sequel, while Sony is prepping for another February theatrical release.

According to Box Office Mojo, Sony's Columbia Pictures has set a release date of February, 2012 for their sequel to the comic book adaptation Ghost Rider; which brought the studio $228.7 million back in 2007. Recent buzz has pegged the directing team of Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (Crank), along with returning star Nicholas Cage, to have already started production on Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance in Bucharest, Romania.

Many fans of the comic character, who represents the devil's Earthly manifestation of vengeance, were not pleased with the campiness of the first film; which drastically underplayed many of the story's horror-centric themes. The tone may change for sequel, though. One of the film's producers, Mike De Luca, has recently said the studio is pushing for a "hard" PG-13 rating; and that this film will be like “pushing the reset button” on the franchise.

Early drafts of the script were written by David Goyer, who has contributed to most of the major comic-to-film franchises over the past decade. The film will supposedly once again pit the title character (Cage/Johnny Blaze) against Mephisto (Marvel Comics' interpretation of Satan), and may also introduce his successor Danny Ketch.

Unless plans unexpectedly change, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance will ride into 2D and 3D theaters February 17th, 2012.