Act Of Valor and Need For Speed helmer Scott Waugh’s The Expendables 4 will release in theaters on September 22, 2023, according to the trades on Thursday evening. The film sees a mix of new and returning cast members, including Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, and Randy Couture, along with Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Megan Fox, Tony Jaa, Iko Iwais, Jacob Scipio, Levy Tran, and Andy Garcia.
Iko Uwais is joining the fourth installment of The Expendables franchise which is currently filming from director Scott Waugh (Need For Speed). The former stuntman is directing from a script by Spenser Cohen therein revised by Max Adams and John Joseph Connolly.
Screendaily‘s Jeremy Kay is exclusively reporting the additions of Sheila Shah, Jacob Scipio and Levy Tran to the current cast roster of the fourth installment of The Expendables franchise.
Eleven years since making trilogy headway, The Expendables franchise will reunite Lionsgate and Millenium Media to shoot its fourth installment later this October with much of the main cast reprising its roles; Jason Statham is reportedly leading the cast this time around and will be joined by Megan Fox as the female lead, with regulars Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture and Sylvester Stallone, Statham’s Furious Seven cohort/martial arts action star star Tony Jaa, and Stallone’s Escape Plan co-star Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson also starring.
Sylvester Stallone said there will be no more Expendables with him.
Call it what you will, but the word now is that despite all earlier reports and hopes for a fourth Expendables movie, actor and franchise co-writer/director/star Sylvester Stallone has abandoned the franchise indefinitely. It wouldn’t be the first time either as it’s also the latest franchise dropped by the actor since the knife-twisting news of his departure from Rambo more than a year ago.
Nu Image/Millenium head Avi Lerner is reportedly in denial of Stallone’s leave, telling Deadline, “We’ve got disagreements with Sly, but we’ve had them for over a year and a half,… “Right now, each one has opinion. We agreed on 95% of things, but there are certain things in production we don’t agree on. I don’t think it’s over, but what write whatever you want. In my opinion, it’s not dead.”
Among those disagreements noted in the report are who would direct, how and where VFX handling would be stationed and Stallone’s own cold feet over the film’s performance as per its current franchise state.
The Expendables 4 was last reported to be part of a shared co-production deal between SP International Pictures, SSXH Beijing and Max Screen Film Distribution back in the Fall of 2015 next to Alain Desrocher’s new Antonio Banderas actioner, Security which opens later this year.
Following Rambo in 2008, Stallone launched the aforementioned franchise in 2010 with The Expendables, answering to the zeitgeist with a nostalgic action movie IP boasting an amalgam of heavy-hitting action stars. Stallone played Barney Ross, a former soldier whose team of mercenaries would frequent themselves as The Expendables in order to execute off-the-books missions for the government, answering to a one Mr. Church, as played by Bruce Willis in the first two films.
The franchise, which also included Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Terry Crews and Randy Couture, would further see the additions of guest appearances and co-stars from Arnold Schwarzenegger, Eric Roberts, Gary Daniels, Steve Austin, Scott Adkins, Chuck Norris, actress Yu Nan and actor Jean-Claude Van Damme before throwing Ronda Rousey, the above-mentioned Banderas, Wesley Snipes and Mel Gibson through its current trilogy standing. Stallone was also on deck as of last summer to help bring The Expendabelles to life, a project that would comprise a female equivalent of badasses in the same vein, though today’s report, if nothing else and unless Lerner’s intuition has anything to show for it, likely changes things.
*A nod to Felix Ng for the news tip!
Producer Steven Paul made a significant showing this year while on hand at Cannes with deals pertaining to forthcoming China co-productions, High Speed and an upcoming Tekken remake to name a few. This week he’s back in the headlines with word on two new titles now well on the way from Nu Image/Millenium.
Variety reports that director Alain Desrochers’s $15 million dollar action thriller, Security, and the currently-developing fourth installment of The Expendables have equity backing as China co-productions following deals made on behalf by Paul’s SP International Pictures made on behalf of SSXH Beijing and Max Screen Film Distribution. Security has reportedly begun principal photography in Bulgaria with Antonio Banderas and Ben Kingsley starring, though plot, date and other cast info details currently remain unknown. Meanwhile, cast and crew info remain pending for The Expendables 4, following a five-year franchise that took off in 2010 with its third banking significantly larger in China, but will begin shooting next year for a 2017 release with a reported budget of up to $100 million dollars.
Shanghai Kuailu Investment Group’s Dr. Shi Jianxiang who owns SSXH and Max Screen will executive produce with Paul while both films are expected to film, in part, China.
Stay tuned for more info.
A fourth Expendables run may quietly be in motion with Terry “Hulk” Hogan and Hong Kong legend Jackie Chan among the names being stirred in the hype pot. There’s no telling when that might happen, but now it appears that Lionsgate is taking the blockbuster action franchise into gaming territory for mobile users.
The latest announcement in Hong Kong came this week on Wednesday and you may read it below:
As part of its continued expansion into the game space, Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF), a premier next generation global content leader, has partnered with producer Avi Lerner’s Millennium Films and Hong Kong-based mobile game developer and publisher Fifth Journey to create an Expendables mobile game, the companies announced today. The Expendables game, based on the star-studded action hero franchise whose first three installments grossed nearly $800 million at the global box office, will be released on mobile phones and tablets in late 2016.
“We’re delighted to partner with the incredibly talented and successful Avi Lerner of Millennium Films and the innovative Eric Tan of Fifth Journey to expand the universe of The Expendables,” said Lionsgate President of Interactive Ventures & Games Peter Levin. “Combining a powerful brand, a global fan base stretching from North America to China and cutting edge technology, The Expendables is the perfect cross-platform property to build into an action-packed mobile game loaded with state-of-the-art features. We’re joining forces with a digital entrepreneur who knows the world of gamers inside and out and is ideally qualified to create a game that will captivate the franchise’s current legions of action fans while introducing it to a whole new digital audience as well.”
“Mobile games are the next logical world for the action heroes of The Expendables to conquer and the fastest-growing segment of the entertainment industry today,” said Mr. Lerner. “With Lionsgate’s tremendous marketing prowess and Fifth Journey’s game development and publishing savvy, we’re fortunate to have innovative and visionary partners who know how to take The Expendables to a new level with a ground-breaking game that will thrill old and new audiences alike.”
“The Expendables has all the ingredients to build its success as an iconic global film franchise into an equally successful game,” said Mr. Tan. “I’m very excited by the opportunity to work with the teams at Lionsgate and Millennium Films to extend this incredibly popular and celebrated brand into a property that will resonate with gamers here in China and around the world.”
Mr. Tan is the CEO and founder of Fifth Journey, which he formed last year after 15 years’ experience with Gameloft China, Electronic Arts Mobile China and Universal Digital Interactive. While serving as China Managing Director for Gameloft, he helped publish and localize games including Ice Age Village, Iron Man 3, Order & Chaos, Thor 2, Spider-Man Unlimited, Dungeon Hunter 4 and Despicable Me 2, which went on to become the company’s biggest seller of all time.
Mr. Lerner, founder, Chairman and CEO of Millennium Films and Nu Image Inc., is one of the most successful and prolific independent filmmakers ever, producing and distributing over 300 films worldwide in the past 20 years between his Nu Image and Millennium Films labels. The Expendables franchise, starring a Who’s Who of action heroes including Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Antonio Banderas, Wesley Snipes, Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronda Rousey, is one of his most beloved and successful ever. The Expendables films have achieved surging box office popularity in China where Expendables 3 ranked as one of the top-grossing Hollywood films last year.
Lionsgate has launched a number of recent initiatives in the game space, investing in Telltale Games and Finnish gaming platform Next Games, partnering with Starbreeze Studios on exclusive downloadable John Wick content that contributed to the film’s highly successful launch and developing television shows based on iconic properties Candy Crush and Titanfall.
A fourth installment of The Expendables franchise has had its fair share of on-again/off-again treatment since the third film released last August. However, knowing how passionate franchise star Sylvester Stallone is about his projects, it’s fair to say that it isn’t too late for another movie, especially since the previous one showed some strength at the global box-office.
That said, I guess we can start taking note of just which faces we can speculate would be in the running to join the film on either side of the hero/villain coin, and there are plenty to go around, and as of this week, former wrestler Hulk Hogan is reportedly looking for a spot in the line-up. According to Uproxx, Hogan was on hand recently at the Body Pro Expo in London where he talked about WresleMania 32 among other things, as well as his reported discussion with Stallone on the matter pertaining to The Expendables 4. “Was talking on the phone with Sly [Stallone] about doing The Expendables 4.” he says. “We’re trying to figure out a way to maybe turn me into the most evil man in the world. Y’know, Stallone gave me my first break and he’s been a great friend. We had a great conversation, talking about the possibilities. Can I still run, can I still jump? Well, not as fast or not as high, but I think Hollywood could find a good stunt man to help me out.”
I think so too, and there are plenty to go around. Besides, it’ll be a treat for the fans to see the two reunite since Rocky III, seeing as how Stallone has already done so much in congregating so many action stars in this franchise, old and new faces alike.
Actor Pierce Brosnan, Expendables 2 villain Jean-Claude Van Damme and boxer Manny Pacquiao are all names that have circulated the rumor mill with the second previously expressing his interest in playing a twin of himself in the fourth – something that would undoubtedly be a worthwhile thing for Van Damme’s fanbase as well. Time will tell, though, if any of these names will come to pass as additions to the cast as Stallone is previously set to work on a number of movies, including a new Rambo film.
Stallone‘s next appearance with be in Creed alongside actor Michael B. Jordan this November.
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
August 15 will be the day that moviegoers will get to officially see the iconic who’s-who of blockbuster fanfare with the release of director Patrick Hughes’s new film, The Expendables 3. Ironically, it will also be the day that the filmmakers and studio involved will see if whether or not the film’s recent illegal leak with affect its box office earnings before ever moving forward with a fourth film. Lionsgate is suing a slate of unnamed defendants for allocating the film through torrent sites two weeks ahead of its release, while the Department Of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement has also opened up a federal investigation on the matter.
It’s a clusterfuck of epic proportions, and needless to say, this all would never be an issue if a bunch of selfish bastards online didn’t steal the film. Personally, I would rather talk about the movies, and that includes the prospects of there being a fourth film in the franchise – a subject of dialogue which has already been picking up steam off and on in the months leading up to now. Actor Pierce Brosnan is already on record showing interest, and the word is that fellow franchise actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson wants to hop in, only he prefers to play the villain instead, according to an answer to a hinted question during a Reddit AMA over a week ago. “I don’t want to be on their team and be buddies with them.” he said. “Fuck that noise. I want to hunt every single one of them down and tell them to ‘send your soul to heaven cause your ass is mine.”
Well, it seems the last 24 hours or so as of this write up have proven positive in this regard. Movie Cricket was on hand to talk to the actor during An Evening With Sylvester Stallone at the Manchester Arena on Friday. Soon after, Movie Cricket’s Billy Fletcher followed up on his report with the news. “Sylvester Stallone confirmed without any doubt to us that he wants Dwayne Johnson to play the villain of Expendables 4.” he says. “This is 100% Rambo confirmed.”
He goes on to say, “Sylvester Stallone confirmed that he saw the comments made by Dwayne Johnson, with the official Expendables Facebook page even uploading a new photograph poster, teasing Dwayne Johnson to ‘Bring It On’. It now seems Sylvester Stallone seriously likes the idea and sees Dwayne Johnson as the perfect villain of Expendables 4.”
A fourth looks probable, and could see some casting changes along the way with at least one actor dialing back on performing action due to health issues. The new film also features a younger generation of action heroes coming into their own on the silver screen, including Ronda Rousey and Kellan Lutz, and with a bankable star like Johnson in the ranks, The Expendables 4 looks like a keeper.
But alas, I digress. Hundreds of thousands (millions, even) of DVD-quality copies of the third film are now leaked onto the internet, and as a result, a lawsuit and federal probe are underway. Neddless to say, as difficult as it is to see a beloved cult favorite film get a sequel (see Dredd 2), if The Expendables 3 flops, don’t be surprised if a fourth film gets shelved indefinitely.
You want a fourth film? Earn it.
Johnson currently stars in Hercules, and will appear with Rousey in Fast And Furious 7 on April 3, 2015.
Buzzing around the web as of recent is talk of a fourth installation into The Expendables franchise, courtesy of the latest blurbs from producer Avi Lerner. With the monopoly shared by the Bulgarian press over all things Lerner and ‘Expendable’-related, exclusive fan site Expendables Premiere managed to forward the following excerpt (via rough translation):
Mr. Lerner , is it true that ” Expendables 3 ” will be the largest action in the current history of the genre ?
LERNER: “Absolutely There is so much action , dynamics, fire and killed than in any other in the world. I am extremely pleased by everything that happened here because of the ” Expendables 3 .” It was the best – studio teams locations . And the second part made in Bulgaria . And the fourth will probably shoot here .”
The update comes in light of other news that began circulating the internet last week that the seasoned producer sought interest in Cameron Diaz, Milla Jovovich and Meryl Streep for the synonymous all-female reboot, The ExpendaBelles, scripted by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith (Legally Blonde) for which he is also seeking a female director. Deadline reports that a director will need to be found before casting begins, so there is no official word yet on who will participate.
Needless to say, with Lerner throwing The Expendables 4 into the mix, it’s safe to say that this new era of bringing back the old school heroes of action cinema won’t be over anytime soon. Check back for further updates as the news continues to trickle.
The Expendables 3 has since wrapped and is now in post production for an August 15, 2014 release from Lionsgate. The Patrick Hughes-directed film stars Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Randy Couture and Terry Crews with Wesley Snipes, Antonio Banderas, Kellan Lutz, Ronda Rousey, Victor Ortiz, Glen Powell, Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, Robert Davi and Kelsey Grammer.
Source: The Action Elite
Photo: Celebrity Net Worth
You must be logged in to post a comment.