Somehow, The Expendables isn’t dead? Despite Expend4bles bombing hard two years ago with just $51M worldwide on a $100M budget, Variety reports the franchise, as well as the John Rambo prequel starring Noah Centineo, have landed at Lionsgate, which seems keen to do a lot more with both.
That’s just wild. Did Lionsgate somehow not watch Expend4bles? It was fucking dreadful. It was so bad that Stallone and Statham barely wanted anything to do with it. Seriously, what is Lionsgate seeing that we all have missed over the last fifteen (!!!) years?
The report says Lionsgate has acquired the rights to develop and produce “all derivative works, including future film and television productions”” of The Expendables franchise.
It’s worth noting that Stallone isn’t even mentioned in the story. Just one more IP that he was central to, just like Rambo, Rocky, and even Cliffhanger, that have moved on without him. Stallone was reportedly writing a fifth movie, but honestly, we’ll have to wait and see if he remains involved. Remember, he retired from this franchise at one point, only to come back for that terrible fourth movie.
Lionsgate also confirmed reports that Centineo will play a young John Rambo in the prequel movie from Sisu director Jalmari Helander. It’s clear that as part of this new deal, future Rambo projects will be in the works, as well.
“This deal expands Lionsgate’s portfolio of genre-defining action franchises and reinforces our commitment to delivering world-class IP across multiple platforms,” said Brian Goldsmith, COO, Lionsgate. “We’re excited to reimagine both ‘The Expendables’ and ‘Rambo’ across film and television —and with ‘John Rambo,’ we’re bringing together a bold creative team to reinvent a classic character for a new generation of fans.”
