On 19th August 2010, something many action film fanatics got something they may well have dreamed of for the past few years, the release of a film full of the biggest action hero’s of the past two decades, written by arguably one of the best, Sylvester Stallone, in ‘The Expendables’.
With stars such as Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren and Terry Crews, as well as Wrestling star ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin and UFC supreme Randy Couture, few could disagree that this could well have been one of the best ever action movies ever made.
Worldwide, ‘The Expendables’ didn’t do to badly, grossing an impressive £266 million when only spending £80 million on making the film. Sylvester Stallone stated that he wanted to have a mix of action stars, but also real fighters, which adds a little bit of reality to the audience of the film, and lets face is, who hasn’t thought of a world renown wrester fight one of the best action stars that has ever existed, it was kind of like taking Rocky fans back in time to when he fought Hulk Hogan in ‘Rocky 3’
If the first expendables weren’t enough, it was announced that ‘The Expendables 2’ is in the making, and the press went crazy about who would be taken away and added to the star studied cast!!
Some of the rumors that were circulating got many fans of the action genre very excited, including myself. Some of the big name actors that we’re mentioned, were the likes of Nicolas Cage and John Travolta, both of course who starred in Director John Woo’s 90’s action classic ‘Face/Off’. Unfortunately however, they will not be appearing in the star studied cast. Mickey Rourke, the man Sylvester Stallone said was the hardest to persuade to join the cast in the original film, will not be seen in the second. No one is sure why exactly; however there have been reports on some US showbiz sites that he wanted more money to play continue in the role he was playing as Tool. Secretly some may have been hoping Mel Gibson would come into the second film, known of course for playing a detective in the immense action films ‘Lethal Weapon’, however they were very ambitious thoughts, given his bad press he has received over the past couple of years.
Despite these 3 A lists actors not been in the film, the cast is still even more impressive then the original Expendables! Remaining in the film are, writer, director and lead actor Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews and Randy Couture. Although, only cameo appearances in the first film, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger will be given bigger roles, something many are thrilled about as no one thought Schwarzenegger would be acting again since he took his role as the Governor of California in the USA. There are also some knew cast members in the sequel, and although they aren’t big names, many are looking forward to seeing how they are going to fit in to an extraordinary cast!
To celebrate the new film, however, ‘Your magazine’ thought we would have a brief look into the star-studded cast.
Sylvester Stallone -
Best known for ‘Rocky’, ‘Rambo’ and ‘Judge Dredd’, the American born star, nicknamed “Sly”, wrote, directed and will lead actor in ‘The Expendables 2’. Sly is widely regarded as one of the best action heroes ever to exist, and created well known characters Rocky and Rambo, two films that are known all over the world and, Rocky in particular is known for its inspiration to its audiences. With the physique of a body builder, he is not widely regarded as the best actor that has ever lived, but with his hard-hitting action movies, he certainly is widely regarded as one of the best action heroes of all time.
Jason Statham –
This English born actor is known for films such as ‘Snatch’, ‘Transporter’ and ‘Crank’. The UK don’t have many action heroes to boast of, certainly not as much as the USA, however he fits into his role in ‘The Expendables’ very well, playing supporting actor to Sylvester Stallone’s character. Statham is not well known for his fighting style, some have martial arts, some have karate, this action star however is more known for his tough guy routine that will do what ever it takes to get the job done.
Jet Li –
Notorious for his roles in ‘Unleashed’, ‘Lethal Weapon 4’ and ‘Hero’, Jet Li is widely regarded not only for his acting, but also for his incredible fighting style. Chinese born Li, who has also been in films such as ‘The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor’, is the smallest cast member in ‘the expendables 2’ at only 5’6, and fights using the martial art Wushu. He was the Chinese national champion in Wushu on several occasions and his mid teens was a Wushu coach before turning to acting and becoming one of China’s biggest stars in the early 1990’s. Since then he has broke into Hollywood has starred in many big films over the years. In ‘The Expendables’, he fought Dolph Lundgren in an epic action scene, and many fans, will be looking forward to seeing what power house he will take on in the ‘the expendables 2’.
Dolph Lundgren –
Lundgren, known mainly for Stallone’s nemesis in Rocky 4, is a Swedish actor. Dolph is not known much for his action heroics but more for his build and his athleticism. He has been in films such as ‘Universal Soldier’ and the original punisher movie and, along with Stallone working along side the big Swede in Rocky 4, where he played a deadly Soviet boxer, Sly is clearly impressed with what he can bring to the big screen, so much so he has been kept on from the first Expendables.
Chuck Norris –
“Chuck Norris does not hunt because the word hunting infers the probability of failure. Chuck Norris goes killing”. This is just one of the jokes which have been so popular due to the legend that is Chuck Norris. This is one of the names that no one expected to be in ‘The Expendables 2’, but it would seem that no one would be disappointed that he is. Known for his films ‘Missing in Action, ‘The Delta Force’ and ‘Hero and the Terror’, Norris was considered to be one of the best action heroes of the 1980’s and early 90’s. In 1968, Norris became the Professional World Middleweight Karate Champion, holding the title undefeated until he retired in 1974. With his action hero legend around the world and karate fighting style, he is sure to fit in well with other action stars from around the world.
Jean-Claude Van Damme –
Nicknamed “The muscles from Brussels”, Jean-Claude Van Damme is known for films such as ‘Universal Soldier’, ‘Time Cop’ and ‘Double Impact’. Most of his films are very cheesy action films, but is noticed by most audiences for his martial arts fighting style. It was very surprising that the Belgian wasn’t in the first expendables, however now that he has signed up for the second, audiences around the world must surely be wondering what role he is going to take up with such a staggering amount of action stars at Sylvester Stallone’s disposal.
Arnold Schwarzenegger -
Nicknamed “Arnie”, the Austrian born former body builder and Governor of California is known for his infamous action characters from ‘Predator’ and ‘Terminator’ as well as such films as ‘Total Recall’ and ‘Running Man’. In an interview Stallone said it would be impossible to get him, even for a Cameo, but the impossible happened and now, one of Stallone’s closest friends and a man considered to be one of the great action movie stars that has ever lived, will be playing a role quite a bit bigger than a cameo this time around!
Bruce Willis –
Bruce Willis, Like Stallone and Schwarzenegger, has also created one of the most famous action characters in history as John McLane in ‘Die Hard’, famously known for his one liners like “Yippee-ki-yay”. It is also best known for the action sequences such as taking down a flying helicopter with a car! He has been in films such as ‘The fifth element’ and even went into comedy doing films such as ‘The whole nine yards’ and appearing in hit TV show ‘Friends’. Willis was a lot more successful in the Comedy genre then both Stallone and Arnie, with Stallone even admitting that he is best suited to the Action Genre and that is what he is going to stick with from now on! Bruce Willis, Like Schwarzenegger, did cameo in the first Expendables however he will also have much more significant role to play in the second sequel!
Terry Crews –
Terry Crews is not known for his action movies, however looking at his physique and athleticism; few could argue he doesn’t fit the look of an action star!
Crews used to be a professional American football player, playing in the NFL. Some sides he played for included the LA Rams, Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles before retiring in 1997. After co writing and co producing his first feature film ‘The Young Boys’, he then went on to appear in films such as ‘The Sixth Day’, ‘Starsky and Hutch’, ‘Click’ and ‘Get Smart’. This landed the attention of Stallone and the producers of ‘The Expendables’ and, with fitting in very well in the first film, has signed up to continue playing one of the mercenaries in the sequel.
Randy Couture –
Randy Couture, like Terry Crews is not known for his action films but more for his fighting skills in the intense mix martial art sport in the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championships) The 13-time champion in the UFC and an expert at wresting and martial arts is in ‘The Expendables’ for a particular reason, Stallone wanted to add a reality to the film and believes having a former professional fighter will add that into the story, and few can argue that it never. In the first expendables, aside from Randy Couture, there was also professional wrestler ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin, who fought Stallone in one of the fights of the film, however with Steve Austin not in the second, many must be wondering whom Randy Couture will take on!
Liam Hemsworth –
Liam Hemsworth is not a very well known actor, however he must have made quite the impression to make this cast! He has appeared in films such as ‘Knowing’ and ‘Triangle’. He does have a very good physique about him, a lot like Jason Statham and so many may be looking at his performance in this film to see if Stallone has found an action star of the future, after all, in this day and age, there are no where near the amount of action heroes as there was in the 90’s!
Scott Adkins –
Like Liam Hemsworth, Scott Adkins is quite a new actor to the mainstream action genre and so many will be looking at him closely in this film to see if he has the potential to be a star of the future. He has appeared in ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’ as an agent chasing Matt Demon’s character Jason Bourne, however, it wasn’t a very big role. Sylvester Stallone will be looking on the English actor, born in Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham, to show his potential and take advantage of such talent he will be acting along side!
The plot to ‘The Expendables 2’ is still unknown to both the audience and the press, however, with such a star-studded cast now confirmed, many are thinking that this could even top the original expendables in terms of action, which many fans won’t be to displeased with!
Unfortunately for us, the movie isn’t out until the middle of August 2012 and they are only currently filming now, nether the less, fans of the action genre can look forward with eagerness to a film which is surely going to be one of the biggest blockbusters of the summer!
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