'Expendables 4' Release Date & Trailer: Cast Star Sylvester Stallone Replaced by Hulk Hogan as Barney Ross? [Report]
Sylvester Stallone is having a stellar 2016 so far, with his Golden Globe Award (Best Supporting Actor) win for his portrayal of Rocky Balboa in Ryan Coogler's 2015 endeavor, "Creed," which also earned him his third Academy Award nomination. But with "Creed" earning critical success and a sequel already in production, as per Variety, where does this leave Stallone's franchise, "The Expendables"?
According to Movie News Guide, rumor has it that Stallone is favoring "Creed" over the fourth iteration of "The Expendables," which is supposed to begin filming this year for a release sometime in 2017.
"The Expendables" debuted in 2010, featuring a stellar cast composed of Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, and Terry Crews, among others. It earned massive success, spawning a sequel that also featured Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The third film was released in 2014.
However, it is rather doubtful that such action films would garner awards for Stallone, which most likely be the reason why he would choose to focus on the "Creed" sequel instead. Moreover, Master Herald reports that the third film performed poorly in comparison to the first two films, which is probably also one of the reasons Stallone would be tentative in making a fourth film.
Last week, Slash Film caught up with Stallone's co-star, Terry Crews as he was promoting FOX's "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" at the Television Critics Association, where he opened up about the future of the film.
"I have to say, with Sly, I think it looks like he’s going to get an Oscar. It’s a matter of whether he’ll be in [Expendables 4]. If he got the Golden Globe, he got the Oscar, there’s a lot more things that are going to be offered to him, but if Sly is in it, I’m in," Crews shared. The actor, who plays Hale Caesar in the film, added that he shares a close bond with Stallone, who he considers as his "my dad in the business." So whatever Stallone says, goes.
"I’m just thinking he’s got options now, as we all should," Crews admitted. "He should think about what his next move is going to be, what he’s going to do. Creed was amazing, amazing. It showed his depth and he’s a lot deeper than people always give him credit for."
Meanwhile, Master Herald is reporting that Hulk Hogan may be a replacement for Stallone in case the latter decides to opt out of the project. No official announcements have been made from both Hogan or Stallone's camps, so fans will have to wait and see what's to come for "The Expendables 4," which is set to hit theaters sometime next year.