Magic Mike XXL Lead Stars & Plot Synopsis Revealed

Source: Movie Web

Matthew McConaughey may have left the building, but the newly-formed franchise still seems to be in capable hands!
Warner Bros. Pictures have today released details of the central cast ensemble for their upcoming sequel to the hit 2012 comedy-drama film Magic Mike. Dubbed Magic Mike XXL, the follow-up has been forced to trade in some of its predecessor's lead stars - The Wolf of Wall Street and Dallas Buyers Club's Matthew McConaughey representing the most notable departure by far - in favour of a host of equally accomplished thespians, all of whom should hopefully add a fresh new character dynamic to the otherwise-potentially stagnant secondary storyline.

What's that we hear you ask? You'd like to hear who the performers in question are? Well, we'd be only too happy to oblige. First and foremost amongst the new recruits is Elizabeth Banks, better known to The Hunger Games fans as the hilarious Effie Trinket and to Pitch Perfect followers as the soon-to-be director of next year's sequel to the award-winning 2013 musical comedy, who'll no doubt offer up plenty of memorable one-liners in her still-to-be-revealed role. A bizarrely common trend amongst the casting announcements, in fact, is the lack of information regarding who'll play which character, but we've no doubt that these details will be unravelled by Warner Bros. (if not by inside sources) in due course. For now, though, we'll round up the other actors who've stepped aboard the XXL bandwagon for more gloriously risqué escapades: Amber Heard (Zombieland); Jada Pinkett Smith (Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted; Gotham); Donald Glover (stand-up comedian); Andie MacDowell (Multiplicity) and Michael Strahan (ex-US footballer).

Seemingly eager to add icing to their metaphorical cake, the studio have moreover released the first official plot synopsis for XXL and whilst we can't claim that it sounds completely original at this point, there's at least room for the production team to manoeuvre the narrative into a state whereby it'll possess enough surprises to keep its viewership engaged along the way. Read on to discover the précis in full: "Picking up the story three years after Mike [still played by Channing Tatum] bowed out of the stripper life at the top of his game, Magic Mike XXL finds the remaining Kings of Tampa [the band of strippers Mike worked alongside in the original] likewise ready to throw in the towel. [...] On the road to their final show, with whistle stops in Jacksonville and Savannah to renew old acquaintances and make new friends, Mike and the guys learn some new moves and shake off the past in surprising ways."

Magic Mike XXL will strut gracefully into UK cinemas nationwide on August 7th, 2015.