The Expendables 2 debuted to an estimated $28.75 million from 3,316 locations. That's off 17 percent from the original Expendables, which scored $34.8 million on its opening weekend in August 2010. Lionsgate reported that the movie's audience was 63 percent male and 65 percent over the age of 25, and that they awarded the movie an "A-" CinemaScore.

Studios would obviously prefer for sequels to at least match their predecessor's grosses, but that's easier said than done. First, the original movie needs to be incredibly well-liked, and that's not necessarily the case with The Expendables: it has a 6.5 rating on IMDb, which is very middle-of-the-road for a male-skewing action movie. Perhaps more importantly, though, the sequel needs to appear to offer something new, which The Expendables 2 didn't really do. Sure, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris joined the cast, but neither of them was featured prominently in commercials. Instead, the emphasis was on the expanded roles for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis, which was tricky to convey given that both actors were included in marketing material for the first outing.

This is still a fine opening for The Expendables 2, and likely puts it on the path to profitability. However, it isn't the kind of performance to build an increasingly expensive franchise on, and if it doesn't hold up incredibly well in the next few weeks it might be tough to get The Expendables 3 going.

Hmm so if it doesn't earn as much money as the first one did, does that mean we won't get an Expendables 3, or does it mean we'll get an Expendables 3 on a lower budget? (and probably pg 13)

Yeah, I hope a lower budget, I don't even think action movies need that big of a budget just well practiced hand to hand combat and lots of ammo :P

action guys in? Harrison ford, Sean Connery, Clint Eastwood? Yes there good actors but this isn't even there type of movie

I think they didn't show Norris because they were scared his bullets would actually fly into the theatre killing the audience.
But seriously I'm wondering the exact same thing too!

I think the focus should be more on allowing the remaining cast to come back and adding Nicolas Cage, Kurt Russell, Mel Gibson, Steven Seagal, The Rock, and Vin Diesel then you would really have all the biggest action stars of the 80's, 90's, and today in ONE MOVIE! I also wouldn't mind seeing Harrison Ford, Jackie Chan, and Clint Eastwood make a cameo appearance each in Expendables 3. Now I am going to come to Sean Connery...why Sean Connery? He is not even a real action star. I don't think Connery should be a top priority for EX3. I don't even understand why they would mention him. Let's focus on the real action stars.

Shut the fuck up Roman you fucking cock sucker.

Overrall, I LOVED this movie! It was everything I hoped it would be. I would've liked the fight between Sly and Van Damme to have been a little longer and I thought they should've shown more of Dolph, Terry, and Randy kicking ass at the end, but all in all it met my expectations, which here considerably high!

As far as what lies ahead for EX3 and who will join the cast, there's a lot of room for more guys. There will be a need for a villain obviously, who will have at least one right hand man. Bruce mentioned "My people" in EX1, so there's room to expand there and Arnold told Sly his team was waiting for him after he was rescued, meaning that they were in close proximity to The Expendables during the rescue! I hope they explore all of these options in some degree.

Nice choices, Eddie. I particularly like the Chuck Lidell addition to add on to the Randy Couture MMA fighter representation. Perhaps another wrestler like Triple H or Dave Bautista to serve as the villain's henchmen a la Steve Austin? Here's who I'd like to see:

Villain: Steven Seagal or Mel Gibson

Arnold's Team: Dwayne Johnson, Vin Diesel, Michael Biehn, Carl Weathers, and Wesley Snipes

Clint Eastwood Cameo: Original leader of The Expendables (both Arnold and Sly served under him. Clint taught them everything they know. When he retired, they fought for control and the unit split into two teams. Sly retained the name and that is the reason why there's tension between he and Arnold).

i also think mel gibson should be in EX3 to bring up his career and should fight bruce willis since they rocked the 90's crazy tough guy action era.

‘The Expendables’ Cast Talk Competition, Careers & One-Liners

http://screenrant.com/expendables-2-interviews-stallone-schwarzenegger-van-damme-statham/