Screen Rant

The Expendables - Franchise

The Expendables is an American action film franchise created by David Callaham and Sylvester Stallone. It revolves around a team of elite mercenaries and serves as an homage to 1980s and 1990s blockbuster action films, featuring iconic action stars. The franchise includes four films, released between 2010 and 2023, along with comic books, video games, and potential spin-offs, including a canceled all-female film. Known for its ensemble cast and explosive action, The Expendables celebrates both classic and modern action heroes.

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Sylvester Stallone's Barney Ross looking sad with the cast of Expendables 4
What Happened To The Expendables Franchise (& Will There Be An Expendables 5?)

The Expendables was once in line to become a major franchise, so where did it all go wrong and could a fifth movie in the series still happen?

Stallone as Barney from the first Expendables and Expendables 4, with the Expendables skull tattoo in the background
The Expendables 5 Needs To Happen Just So Stallone Can Finally Break An Annoying Career Trend That Ruined A Lot Of His Films

The Expendables 5 may never happen after the fourth movie bombed, but if it does it can finally fix Sylvester Stallone's most annoying movie rule.

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Jean Claude Van Damme holding a large knife as Vilain in The Expendables 2
Jean-Claude Van Damme’s Silliest Character Was Given The Best Name A Villain Could Have

The Expendables franchise gifted action icon Jean-Claude Van Damme with his greatest character name, which was very fitting for his villain.

5 Ideas To Save The Expendables After 2023's $51 Million Flop
5 Ideas To Save The Expendables After 2023's $51 Million Flop

The last Expendables movie was a box office bomb, but there are still some ways to save the franchise, like an all-female spinoff or casting The Rock.

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Dwayne Johnson as Hobbs and Jean-Claude Van Damme as Vilain in The Expendables
The Rock In An Expendables Movie Would’ve Continued The Franchise’s Best Villain Trend That Began With Jean-Claude Van Damme

Dwayne Johnson once revealed his dream role in The Expendables, and it would continue a villain trend that began back with the second film.

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Sylvester Stallone from The Expendables and Dwayne The Rock Johnson from Jumanji
"I Don't Want To Be On Their Team:" The Rock's Dream Expendables Role Would've Saved The Sylvester Stallone Franchise

A decade ago, Dwayne Johnson named his dream Expendables movie role in a Reddit AMA, and it may have been just what the franchise needed.

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An edited image of Sylvester Stallone as Rocky and Barney Ross in The Expendables.
Rocky’s Fate In Creed 3 Looks Much Better After What Happened To Sylvester Stallone’s Character In Expendables 4

Stallone's iconic Rocky character gets a much better ending in the Creed films than another one of his characters, Barney, receives in Expend4bles.

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Jet Li, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Iko Uwais in The Expendables
7 Action Stars Wasted By The Expendables Movies

From martial arts legends to Hollywood icons, these action stars deserved better than their underwhelming roles in The Expendables franchise.

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An edited image of Sylvester Stallone and Jason Statham from The Expendables series smiling.
This 4-Minute Expendables Scene Made The Entire $840 Million Franchise Worth It

An intense four-minute scene during the climax of The Expendables 2 highlights all of the positive qualities of the action-packed franchise.

A collage of Jason Statham action movies, including Mechanic: Resurrection, Wrath of Man and Fast & Furious
Jason Statham’s Highest-Grossing Action Movies Show How Much This $840 Million Franchise Wasted Him

Jason Statham has a history of fronting hit action franchises, but what should have been his best series ended up wasting his talents completely.

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Disappointing Stallone and Schwarzenegger Harsh Truth About Expendables
This Disappointing Stallone & Schwarzenegger Detail Reveals 1 Harsh Truth About The Expendables Franchise

Sylvester Stallone & Arnold Schwarzenegger have only appeared in 4 films together, 3 of them Expendables movies, leaving audiences wanting more.

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Sylvester Stallone in The Expendables 3
The Expendables' Sylvester Stallone Replacement Had An Impossible Challenge After 32% RT Disaster

Sylvester Stallone ed the Expendables franchise to his replacement in 2014, but it was nearly impossible for the movie series to be recovered.

Jason Statham as Lee Christmas and Sylvester Stallone as Barney Ross in Expendables 4 against a desert background custom image
“Oh Man, That’s Rough”: Why Expendables 4’s CGI Looks So Bad Despite $100M Budget Detailed By VFX Artists

Expendables 4 had a $100 million budget, but the CGI is poor, and the VFX artists at Corridor Crew have a good explanation for why it didn't work.

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Statham in Guy Ritchie's Revolver (2005) with Statham's Christmas from Expendables 4
The Director Who Made Jason Statham A Star Would Be Perfect To Save His Failing $840 Million Franchise

The filmmaker who helped Jason Statham become a movie star would be the best choice to help save one of the actor's flagging action franchises.

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Jason Statham as Lee Christmas looking ready to fight with the cast of Expendables 4 behind him
The Expendables 5 Has The Opposite Problem From This Other Ensemble Action Movie Franchise

Whether it's happening or not, The Expendables 5 has the opposite problem of another ensemble action movie that's considering a fifth series entry.

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Keanu Reeves from John Wick with Sylvester Stallone and Jason Statham from The Expendables
Keanu Reeves’ John Wick Movies Make This Disappointing $855 Million Action Franchise Even Worse In Hindsight

The success of the John Wick movies, which have become one of the Top 100 movie franchises of all time, puts a previous action franchise to shame.

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Sylvester Stallone as Barney Ross and Jason Statham as Lee Christmas from The Expendables franchise
The Expendables Abandoned Its Perfect Future 10 Years Ago

With four franchise titles to its name, The Expendables series missed out on the perfect opportunity to expand its movie universe several years ago.

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Jason Statham in The Beekeeper and Jason Statham as Adam Clay looking series in Expendables with coins behind him
Jason Statham's 2024 Action Movie Hit Shows How To Save His $840 Million Franchise

Jason Statham's latest action blockbuster might have revealed the key to saving one of the actor's biggest franchises as the fifth installment nears.

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Jason Statham as a scrawling Lee Christmas from Expend4bles against the poster for The Dirty Dozen
A David Ayer War Movie Remake Would Be Jason Statham's Perfect Expendables Replacement

The Expendables 4 just about killed the franchise, but Jason Statham may have the perfect replacement with an David Ayer war movie remake.

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Jason Statham as Christmas and Sylvester Stallone as Barney from Expend4bles
The Expendables Wasted Its Perfect Stallone & Statham Replacement After Introducing Him 10 Years Ago

The future of the Expendables franchise looks uncertain, but it turns out that the movies wasted an ideal casting replacement over a decade ago.

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