Director Gareth Evans has released a new image from The Raid 2 showing that the sequel will be no less violent and gory than the original.  In the tweet, Evans says that the image is from a shootout that they filmed yesterday.  Filming is set to go for over 100 days, and they’ve been rolling cameras since the end of January.  If Evans is willing to tweet out this kind of gory image, it’s likely this is just the tip of the blood-soaked iceberg that will make the original pale by comparison.

Hit the jump to check out the image, and click here for Steve’s interview with Evans from Sundance 2012.  The Raid 2 (aka Berandal) stars Iko Uwais, Tio Pakusadewo, Putra Arifin Scheunamann, Julie Estelle, Alex Abbad and Roy Marten.

Production has officially started on writer/director Gareth Evans’ The Raid 2 in Indonesia and we’ve got the first images from the sequel to share with you.  Picking up where The Raid/The Raid: Redemption left off, Rama (Iko Uwais) leaves the high-rise behind in order to infiltrate a Jakarta crime syndicate with the intentions of protecting his family and unearthing the corruption within his police force.  The sequel also stars Tio Pakusadewo, Putra Arifin Scheunamann, Julie Estelle, Alex Abbad and Roy Marten, and will shoot for the next 100-odd days.  Check out Steve’s interview with Evans in which he talks about the sequel, then hit the jump to see the first official images and read the full press release for The Raid 2.

Gareth Evans‘ action flick The Raid: Redemption took festival audiences by storm at TIFF 2011, Sundance 2012, and SXSW 2012, and the director is already hard at work on the sequel, Berandal (which means “thug”).  Speaking to Steve at Sundance, Evans said the sequel will be bigger, and he hopes to “bring car chase elements to it as well. So we have like a cool fight scene where you go inside a car, fighting against four people as it’s speeding along a one-way.”  The Raid is an intense ride for its hero, Rama (Iko Uwais), so I’m sure he’ll have time to rest up.  He barely made it out of the tower with his life.  So how much time will he have for some much-needed R&R?

Two hours.  Hit the jump for more.

We knew that Iwo Ukais, star of director Gareth Evans’ The Raid, was set to return for the sequel, Berandal, but now we have our first look a a new character.  Evans tweeted an image of Alicia, aka “Hammer Girl,” recently, but no other information on her character has been released.  It’s not clear which side Hammer Girl will be on when Berandal hits screens.  If you haven’t seen the original film, you’re in luck: The Raid: Redemption is now available in an unrated version on Blu-ray and DVD.  Hit the jump to see the image of Hammer Girl and for more on The Raid and Berandal, including an interview with Evans himself.

Though we’ve known for quite a while, director Gareth Evans is now officially set to direct Berandal (tentative title), the sequel to his much buzzed about action pic The Raid. I haven’t stopped hearing great things about The Raid since it screened at TIFF, and our own Matt Goldberg recommends it without hesitation. The martial arts-heavy film centers on 20 elite SWAT team members must make their way up the treacherous floors of a criminal-infested highrise in order to get to the gang’s leader. It’s a simple premise, but after watching the trailer you begin to see how Evans has crafted a pretty insane actioner.

The film opens in the U.S. on March 23rd under the title The Raid: Redemption, but Evans previously told Steve that The Raid is the first in a planned trilogy. He talked extensively about the follow-up and said he hopes to bring car chase elements to the sequel, Berandal. THR confirms that both Evans and star Iwo Uwais are officially set to return for the next installment, and Evans told Steve that the budget for Berandal will be “significantly larger” than the first film, with an eye towards close to $3 million. Production on the sequel will apparently last around 100 days.