Sylvester Stallone spoke about the future of the Rambo franchise. He first played John Rambo in 1982’s First Blood and recently addressed Noah Centineo taking over in the upcoming prequel. Stallone discussed the challenges of handing off the role and what the new film might bring.
Sylvester Stallone says Noah Centineo’s Rambo could be challenging but ‘fantastic’
Sylvester Stallone addressed the future of the Rambo franchise in a conversation with Entertainment Tonight guest correspondent Jessica Moore. He discussed Noah Centineo’s casting in the upcoming prequel, which will explore John Rambo’s early years before First Blood and his experiences during the Vietnam War.
Stallone reacted to the passing of the role, noting that Centineo’s interpretation would be a challenge but also expressed confidence in its potential. “I don’t know much about the young man, but this will be quite a challenge, I just hope they get… I think it should be fantastic, I really do,” he said.
The upcoming film, titled John Rambo, is set before First Blood and will follow a young John Rambo’s experiences before and during the Vietnam War. Stallone explained how he envisioned Rambo’s early years.
“I always thought of Ram as very highly popular. He was, you know, chapter of [the] football team. It was getting great straight A. I mean, he was just that kind of, kind of valedictorian. And the war broke him down. And turned [him] into this havoc machine, suffered from PTSD. So, I wanted to see that evolution.”
Stallone also revealed to Screen Rant that he had previously considered a different approach for the prequel, including an AI-driven project to digitally recreate his younger self as Rambo. “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,” he said. He explained that the project never materialized, adding: “We procrastinated too long and they took it over and, I hope, you know, good luck.”
Stallone spent over four decades shaping the character as both star and co-writer. He confirmed he will not take part in the upcoming prequel.
Originally reported by Vritti Johar on ComingSoon.
