Rishabh Borde
Filmmaking duo Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh’s homage to people who serve in the U.S. military, ‘Act of Valor’, is a gritty action movie that has among its cast real, active duty Navy SEALS personnel. The movie released in 2012 and tanked hard with critics, but won over audiences and was a resounding commercial success. A sequel was announced a while back, so now seems like a good time to catch up with everything that’s been going on with ‘Act of Valor 2’.
Act of Valor 2 Plot: What Is It About?
A second ‘Act of Valor’ film has been discussed for a long time now, with a plot synopsis released back in 2013 revealing that the movie centers around a group of elite SWAT officers this time around. The fundamental premise is the same – a gritty action film that depicts the harsh realities of the life of men who protect us.
Like the first film, ‘Act of Valor 2’ places a heavy emphasis on realism and authenticity. The original movie went as far as to consult with real-life Navy SEALS and even featured them in the movie for certain roles to lend an air of validity to the action sequences.
Of course, since ‘Act of Valor 2’ focuses on SWAT officers this time around, the movie is likely to be set in an urban jungle environment instead of being a globe-trotting adventure. Naturally, such a movie is bound to tell a much more down to earth, yet equally spirited, story about the lives lived by the boys in blue. Following the legacy of the first film, we may even see some real-life SWAT officers star in ‘Act of Valor 2’.
Of course, the formula of the original ‘Act of Valor’ lends itself quite nicely to a number of possible sequels. It was a fictionalized version of a very real and dangerous operation executed by a group of elite military specialists. A sequel could follow any number of different plotlines and characters.
One possibility is that the movie could draw inspiration from the recent real-life Operation Kayla Mueller, also known as the Barisha Raid conducted by U.S. Army Rangers and Delta Force operators to locate and eliminate ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Act of Valor 2 Cast and Crew: Who Is Behind the Movie?
The original ‘Act of Valor’ is directed by American filmmaking duo Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh and ‘300’ screenwriter Kurt Johnstad. McCoy and Waugh return for the sequel as producers, but the screenwriting and directing responsibilities have been passed on to American filmmaker Scott Wiper, who is best known for films such as ‘A Better Way to Die’ and ‘The Condemned’.
The primary cast of the original movie consists of Jason Cottle as Abu Shabal, Alex Veadov as Mikhail “Christo” Troykovich, Rorke Denver as Lieutenant Rorke Engel and Roselyn Sánchez as Lisa Morales. The movie also stars a number of real-life marines who are uncredited to protect their identities. Considering that ‘Act of Valor 2’ will feature an entirely new storyline, none of the original cast is expected to return for the sequel.
Act of Valor 2 Release Date: When Will It Premiere?
At the time of writing, there is no concrete release date for ‘Act of Valor 2’. Considering the fact that production hasn’t begun yet, the earliest we can expect the movie to release is by the end of 2021.
Act of Valor Movie Retrospective:
The original ‘Act of Valor’ was a relatively low budget production and featured relatively unknown actors in the lead roles. The action film follows the story of SEAL Team 7 of Bandito Platoon consisting of Dave, Wiemy, Mikey, Ray, Sonny, Ajay, and Lieutenant Rorke. When a notorious drug smuggler named Mikhail “Christo” Troykovich murders a CIA operative Walter Ross and kidnaps another named Lisa Morales, the squad is deployed to Costa Rica in order to mount a daring rescue.
The SEALS parachute down to the designated location stealthily and engage the guards, extract Morales and escape in a specialized speedboat. Mikey is shot in the head and blinded in one eye during the operation but makes it out alive.
Meanwhile, a fundamentalist Chechen terrorist named Abu Shabal masterminds a plot to kill the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines along with his son and dozens of other children at an elementary school. After fulfilling his plan, Abu escapes and later meets up with Christo in Kyiv as it is revealed that the two are childhood friends. They discuss their plan to arm suicide bombers with specialized vests.
Elsewhere somewhere in the ocean is the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard. Onboard the ship, the SEAL team is briefed about the intelligence regarding Shabal and Christo’s personal and professional links as well as his intention of bringing Jihad to the United States. Ajay and Ray are sent to Somalia to intercept one of Shabal’s arms deals, while Rorke, Dave, Sonny, and Weimy stay back in the U.S. in case the terrorists manage to infiltrate the country.
A new team called SEAL Team 4 begins searching for Christo across the oceans. Eventually, they find him and interrogate him, learning of Shabal’s plan to detonate vest bombs across the U.S. to wreak havoc and fear, greater than the 9/11 attacks.
The SEALS track Abu Shabal to Mexico, who attempts to cross into the U.S. via a series of tunnels underneath a milk factory. They link up with the Mexican Special Forces and mount an assault at the factory. During the firefight, Rorke jumps on a live grenade and sacrifices himself in order to save his team. Dave pursues the remaining escaping terrorists and shoots several of them but is taken by surprise and shot multiple times by Shabal. Just as Shabal is about to execute him, Sonny arrives and kills him.
The movie ends with the SEALS paying their respects to Rorke in a military funeral back home.
Act of Valor Trailer:
While we wait for more news about ‘Act of Valor 2’, you can watch the trailer for ‘Act of Valor’ right here.
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