Gina Carano to Star in Steven Soderbergh Movie

This is not great news for Strikeforce:

Director Steven Soderbergh has committed to next direct “Knockout,” a spy thriller that will mark the screen starring debut of Gina Carano, the mixed martial arts circuit fighter.

...Scripted by Lem Dobbs, “Knockout” casts Carano as a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who is given a second chance to use her skills for constructive purposes. The film is a closer cousin to “La Femme Nikita” and “Kill Bill” than “Million Dollar Baby,” in that it doesn’t take place in the fight ring. Rather, Soderbergh considers the film as a flat out action film in the James Bond mold, and will shoot in locations around the world that include Ireland, Turkey and the U.S.

I’ll ignore the fact that the plot description makes it sound like absolutely the least original movie ever and focus on the news itself. Gina is the one proven draw in Strikeforce and there is no way she is going to be fighting any time soon when she is filming a movie that includes travel to multiple countries.

The rumors are the Showtime wants there to be 12-16 shows on the network in 2010. This would require the promotion’s biggest stars (Carano, Nick Diaz, Fedor Emelianenko, Jake Shields) to fight 2-3 times each just to have enough main events to cover the schedule. Take Gina out of the mix and I think we could be looking at a truly desperate situation for Strikeforce.