'Smurfs' Sequel Gets 2013 Release Date

In a piece of unsurprising news, Sony just announced they'll release a sequel to The Smurfs on August 2, 2013, hoping to duplicate the late summer success of its predecessor, which is still in theaters.

The first film, based on 50-year-old characters and best known as a 30-year-old cartoon, didn't seem like a sure thing a few weeks ago. Its 22% rating on Rotten Tomatoes wasn't helping matters. However, instead of releasing the film in the middle of summer, Sony's genius idea to release The Smurfs at the tail-end of summer basically made the film critic proof. By the time late July rolled around, most of the major family films had come and gone leaving plenty of families hungry for something new. So The Smurfs, seemingly out of nowhere, just barely missed beating Universal's high-profile Cowboys & Aliens in its opening weekend and will likely crack $150 million internationally before it's two weeks old.

Read which films The Smurfs 2 compete with in two years after the jump.

Producer Jordan Kerner will return but there's no word on screenwriters or directors just yet. One would assume, though, that most of the major cast – both live action and voice actors – would return, especially if they're following the similar success of another Eighties reboot, Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Did anyone see The Smurfs? Is it as bad as we can assume? Are you surprised it became such a hit?

Source: Variety