It's been rumored for some time now, but it's now official: the great(ly troubled) Mel Gibson has joined the cast of 'The Expendables 3,' where he'll play the main bad guy. He's also being joined by Antonio Banderas, another fading star who has been rumored to join the film for quite some time.

The word comes via EW and comes hot on the heels of Bruce Willis' departure from the franchise and Harrison Ford's casting. This means that the full line-up for the third 'Expendables' adventure includes Sylvester Stallone, Ford, Gibson, Banderas, Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Stallone has also been pursuing Wesley Snipes, Nicolas Cage, Milla Jovovich, Jackie Chan and Steven Seagal for additional roles. If he manages to get everyone on his wish list, 'The Expendables 3' may very well have the most insane cast of all time.

And we hope he does. This franchise has never been particularly good, but it's fun (and strange and weird) to see so many familiar faces on screen at the same time. There is no reason for half of these people to even be in the same room together, so even when the results are slapdash, it's worth checking out. We're especially interested to see what Gibson does with this material. Between this and a villainous turn in 'Machete Kills,' it looks like Hollywood's most prominent madman is embracing his heel persona.

'The Expendables 3' will be directed by Patrick Hughes and is targeting an August 14, 2014 release date.

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