Sylvester Stallone's 2008
Rambo was enough of a hit at the
worldwide box office that plans were being made for a fifth movie in the franchise that began with
First Blood in 1982. Stallone spoke several times about his plans for
Rambo 5, initially saying that the plot would revolve around human traffickers, then announcing that the franchise get a
go sci-fi by having Rambo fight a "feral beast." Stallone then announced that the "man/beast" story would become a different movie, with a different protagonist, and that
Rambo 5 would
go back to the original plot. Now, however, Stallone has announced that he plans to
shelve the Rambo franchise, possibly forever.
In a recent interview with
Empire, Stallone said that he is "99% sure" that "Rambo's pretty well done" and that he didn't "think there'll be any more."
"I was going to do it. I said I’d never talk about this, but with—I feel that with Rocky Balboa
, that character came complete circle. He went home. But for Rambo to go on another adventure might be, I think, misinterpreted as a mercenary gesture and not necessary. I don’t want that to happen.
"I’m very happy with the last Burmese episode, because I didn’t pull any punches on it. I wanted it to be what civil war really is—rough. You can’t candy coat it, and where do you go from there? So that’s [Rambo V] going to go."
Stallone hasn't completely abandoned the character, however. He went on to say that he is currently at work on a director's cut of
Rambo that will add twelve minutes to the movie.
"He does a speech at the beginning of the movie to Julie Benz where he lays out why his life has been a complete disappointment and why war is natural and peace is an accident. And how he just feels that his life has been a waste. It’s very important to hear that and I didn’t think so at the time. I’m going to go back and put in some stuff."
Farewell, John Rambo.