The anctipated Rambo prequel is currently in production in Bangkok, Thailand from Millennium Media/Lionsgate (The Expendables), who enlisted the services of Jalmari Helander (Big Game), a director best known for his celebrated 2022 Finnish action film, Sisu.
Titled John Rambo, the film – scribed from Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani (Black Adam) – serves as the origin story of America’s favorite one-man army, set during the Vietnam War (via World of Reel).
Noah Centineo – who is perhaps best known for 2022’s Black Adam, the 2022 Netflix spy series The Recruit, and the upcoming Street Fighter movie – is stepping into the role of John Rambo (previously famously played by the legendary Sylvester Stallone).
Also starring are Yao (the dude from Sinners, and yes, he has a one-word name), Jason Tobin (Pound of Flesh), Quincy Isaiah (Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty), Jefferson White (Yellowstone), and Tayme Thapthimthong (The White Lotus).
Although he won’t appear in the film, Stallone, who is on board as Executive Producer, had this to say via IG:
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The iconic franchise started with 1982’s First Blood and peaked into a worldwide phenomenon with 1985’s Rambo: First Blood Part II. Then came 1988’s Rambo III, 2008’s Rambo (aka Rambo 4) and finally, 2019’s Rambo: Last Blood (aka Rambo 5).
Prior to 2008’s Rambo movie, some of the ideas studios were dancing around was putting Rambo against experimental Universal Soldier-like enemies; then there was the concept that had Rambo out to rescue a kidnapped girl from sex traffickers, an idea that ultimately branched out to not only Rambo: Last Blood, but also the recent Jason Statham actioner, A Working Man (which Stallone co-wrote).
Another studio brainstorm saw Rambo and his estranged brother battle against villains during a storm, while a post-9/11 idea saw Rambo fight terrorists inside the United Nations building. And let’s not forget the a concept that had Rambo up against a villain played by Jackie Chan (via Screen Rant).
In 2013, producer Avi Lerner conspired to turn Rambo into a TV series with Stallone reprising his role as John Rambo for television. Then in 2015, there was word that Fox locked in a deal for Rambo: New Blood, which would explore the complex relationship between Rambo (not played by Stallone) and his son, J.R., an ex-Navy SEAL.
In a recent interview with ScreenRant, the topic of a planned Rambo prequel came up, and Stallone said he had the idea to use AI to help recreate his younger Rambo before the John Rambo team took the baton:
“I wanted to do the first AI… not retroactive… but I wanted to rewrite history of the earlier Rambo because I wanted Rambo to be the nicest guy in the school, the valedictorian, the prom king, and all that stuff. And when he goes to Vietnam, he thinks it’s going to be a three-week hit-and-run, and you see him being tortured and captured, his friends murdered, one thing after another, and [his] life in Saigon.”
Who knows, maybe some of these ideas can be repurposed for a Godfather Part II-type deal? (where the next film can be a prequel and sequel at the same time).
🔥 Footnote: We’ve seen what Jalmari Helander can do as an action director. Give it to us, daddy.
We’ll keep you updated on John Rambo as we hear more. For now, we leave you with a word from the director, plus all the Trailers to this legendary action franchise. Which one is your favorite?
I’ve watched the first four.
They can keep the fifth one and shove this prequel where the sun don’t shine.
The main problem with the 5th one is it didn’t feel like a Rambo film. Other than that, I thought it was a decent action flick (enjoyed it more than all the John Wick films combined).
The fifth movie should have been called something else and have nothing to do with the Rambo franchise. The finale of it was admittedly well done, but the movie as a whole felt unnecessarily cruel for the sake of being cruel and with a completely sour note.
Yeah, it basically showed even Stallone can be really dour in his storytelling. I, feel he is limited with that outside him writing for Rocky or the realm of Boxing. If, he had a co-writer or someone to really add more hope or heart despite the conflicts it could of been better. Plus, Rambo works better in the jungles too.
I do like the idea of an urban Rambo. Just like The Predator was able to go from the jungle to the city, I wish Rambo went in a similar direction.
Everyone has their own tastes but John Wick are some of the best action films since The Raid. If, you are into martial art type flicks especially when they a world or building blocks that has it’s own grittiness to it as well. Both are basically one man army flicks though course there’s more fight styles and the like in other franchises.
It’s important to have variety out there. I love movies where people in suits are doing all kinds of fancy brutal grappling and close quarters gunplay, but we also need straight up brawling with people in denim, the kung fu and gun fu of the bygone era, and the old fashioned (not outdated) action that made us fans in the first place.
There’s room for all of it, and there can still be something for everyone.
THE RAID films easily blow away the JOHN WICK films,along with THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS films and the MISSION IMPOSSIBLE films.
Millennium is tightly associated with Sly, Sisu was a great movie so the director on it is awesome as for the Actor who plays John and the vibe we will see though his character works better for a prequel than Sly wanting a Rocky prequel. Rambo we least can see him before he ended up in that town. Strong but not given up yet.
I maintain the 5th installment of a franchise is the death knell for it’s Iconic Character, at that stage everything endearing about it’s Lead has been obliterated and replaced with a pale, charmless facsimile.
I submit as evidence:
John Rambo: In LAST BLOOD, ole’ John has seemingly lost his Special Forces skills along with his hair. The man who infiltrated a Vietnamese POW camp, a Soviet fortress in Afghanistan, a Myanmar military prison is now taken out like a punk in a seedy high rise by some Mexican gang bangers.
John McClane: In DIE HARD 5, McClane has been reduced to an angry, nagging father and acts like the stereotypical “Ugly American tourist” in Moscow.
The Terminator: Arnold’s 5th appearance as the T-800 sees his killer cyborg married and selling drapes for a living(!)
James Bond: Daniel Craig’s 5th and final outing as 007 finds Bond being sexually rejected by women, stuck in a troubled marriage and waking up to make breakfast for his daughter (!!)
Indiana Jones: In DIAL OF DESTINY, Indy is grouchy, tired and has to frequently rely on an annoying and smug sidekick , who also punches him out in the climax.
Jack Sparrow: Sparrow is just going through the motions in PIRATES 5, his once wry cheekiness and quirky mannerisms now seem affected
Luke Skywalker: IN THE LAST JEDI, The Jedi Master is now a bitter hermit in self-imposed exile who drinks milk from a sea camel’s tits.
I have a few counterpoints to those. With the 5th Rambo, Die Hard, Indy, and Terminator, those were the results of rush jobs, lack of creativity, and or the lead actor being completely bored and passionless. At the very least, if the leads were really enthusiastic and front and center, that would have changed things for the better.
With the 5th Craig Bond, that wasn’t the case at all as he was much more enthusiastic and properly ended his final chapter. As for Pirates, that was going downhill long before 5, and I’m a defender of the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, and there’s too much to say there.
I do hope Noah Centineo has a better showing here than as a wasted Atom Smasher who’s portrayed as an awkward, dorky man child.
Rambo 5 feels less like a thrilling conclusion to a beloved chatacter and more of alt right love letter written by Ben Shapiro and Lamb Rogan Joe(sh). Indy 5 has to be the one that jumped the shark the highest though. Probably the worst use of time travel in a big budget Hollywood movie ever.