Universal Soldier: Regeneration

***Universal Soldier: Regeneration*** (also known in some countries as ***Universal Soldier: A New Beginning***) is a 2009 American sci-fi action film directed and edited by John Hyams (the son of director Peter Hyams). The film stars Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, who both reprise their roles from the first film. It is the third theatrical installment in the *Universal Soldier series*.

## Plot

A group of terrorists led by Commander Topov (Zahary Baharov) kidnap the Ukrainian prime minister's son and daughter and hold them hostage, demanding the release of their imprisoned comrades within 72 hours. In addition, they have taken over the crippled Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and threaten to detonate it if their demands are not met. It is revealed that among the ranks of the terrorists is an experimental Next-Generation UniSol (NGU) (Andrei "The Pit Bull" Arlovski), who was smuggled in by rogue scientist Dr. Colin (Kerry Shale).

U.S. forces join up with the Ukrainian army at the plant, but quickly retreat when the NGU slaughters most of them effortlessly. Dr. Porter (Garry Cooper), Dr. Colin's former colleague on the Universal Soldier program, revives four UniSols to take down the NGU, but they are systematically eliminated.

Former UniSol Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), who is undergoing rehabilitation therapy in Switzerland with Dr. Sandra Fleming (Emily Joyce) with the goal of rejoining society, is taken back by the military to participate in the mission. As the deadline nears its expiration, the prime minister announces the release of the prisoners. The terrorists, having gotten what they wanted, rejoice and shut off the bomb. Dr. Colin, however, is not pleased with the outcome, as he feels his side of the business is not done. As the NGU is programmed not to harm the terrorists, Dr. Colin unleashes his second UniSol: a cloned and upgraded version of Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren) - Deveraux's nemesis - who quickly kills Commander Topov. However, Dr. Colin never considered Scott's mental instability, and he is killed by his own creation. Scott then reactivates the bomb before heading out to hunt the children.

In the midst of the chaos, Capt. Kevin Burke (Mike Pyle) is sent in to infiltrate the plant and rescue the prime minister's
children. He is successful in locating them and leads them toward safety. On their way out, they encounter the NGU. The children flee as
Burke tries in vain to hold off the NGU, who stabs him to death after a brutal fight.

With 30 minutes remaining on the bomb's timer, a re-conditioned Deveraux is geared up and sent to the plant, where he kills every
terrorist he encounters. He searches the buildings and finds the children cornered by Scott. Scott, who has distorted memories of
Deveraux, is about to kill the children when Deveraux attacks and a grueling fight ensues. In the end, Deveraux impales Scott on the
forehead with a lead pipe and fires a shotgun through it, blowing his brains out.

As Deveraux escorts the children to safety, they are attacked by the NGU. Deveraux and the NGU take the fight to the site of the bomb, with less than two minutes remaining. During the melee, Deveraux removes the detonator and jams it in the back of the NGU's uniform as they both jump out of the reactor chamber. NGU pulls the detonator off his back as it explodes, taking him with it. U.S. soldiers quickly arrive on the scene and tend to the children as Deveraux leaves. Burke's body is placed in a black bag and taken away, as well as recovered pieces of the NGU.

In Langley, Virginia, Burke's body is shown stored in a cryogenic chamber as a new UniSol, along with multiple clones made of him.

## Cast

* Jean-Claude Van Damme as Luc Deveraux
* Dolph Lundgren as Andrew Scott
* Andrei "The Pit Bull" Arlovski as NGU
* Mike Pyle as Capt. Kevin Burke
* Garry Cooper as Dr. Porter
* Corey Johnson as Col. John Coby
* Kerry Shale as Dr. Colin
* Aki Avni as Gen. Boris Petrov
* Emily Joyce as Dr. Sandra Fleming
* Yonko Dimitrov as Dimitri
* Violeta Markovska as Ivana
* Zahari Baharov as Commander Topov
* Kristopher Van Varenberg as Miles
* Jon Foo as UniSol 2

## Release

On October 1, 2009, a surprise screening of the film took place at the Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas, U.S.A.

The film's international theatrical release dates are as follows: in Israel on January 7, 2010, followed by the Philippines on January 8,
followed by both Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on January 27, both Malaysia and Singapore on January 28. A month later, it was
released in Lebanon on March 25, 2010, Jordan on March 31, 2010 and Japan on June 26, 2010. The film was released directly on DVD and Blu-ray on February 2 in the United States, February 9 in Brazil, April 5 in the United Kingdom, and May 4 in France and Germany.

## Sequel

The movie was followed by *Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning* also directed by John Hyams.