The Expendables actors are part of a giant ensemble cast, but some big names have turned the franchise down. One of Sylvester Stallone’s major action movie franchises, The Expendables franchise kicked off in 2010, directed by Sylvester Stallone who brought together a cast of action heroes in a tribute to ‘80s action movies. The Expendables was a big hit upon its release, with The Expendables 2 following in 2012 and expanding its roster even more. While 2014’s The Expendables 3 brought in the biggest ensemble the franchise had ever seen, its PG-13 rating led to it being a financial disappointment.
Despite the slump, The Expendables delivered a roster of very impressive stars. With Stallone as the series’ lead, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture and Terry Crews make up the core team, with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis as close allies. The Expendables cast also included Jean-Claude Van Damme, Scott Adkins, Chuck Norris, Mel Gibson, Wesley Snipes, Harrison Ford and Antonio Banderas, among many other big names. However, there were also a few big names who turned down offers to appear.
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Kurt Russell
Sylvester Stallone’s original choice to play Mr. Church in The Expendables was Kurt Russell. However, Russell turned down the role, reportedly due to the fact that he was not inclined “to play in an ensemble at the moment.” Russell later said that he hadn’t even watched the franchise, saying, “I don’t understand anything. For me it’s like looking back.” Due to Russell turning down the spot, Stallone ultimately cast Bruce Willis as Mr. Church in The Expendables.
Steven Seagal
While The Expendables was being prepared, Steven Seagal was also offered a cameo role in the ensemble action film. Seagal declined due to disagreements with someone in the franchise. “I just didn’t like some of the participants. Life’s too short to work with funny people,” Segal said (via Slash Film). Seagal then refused to name names.
Bruce Willis
Following his appearance as one of the original cast members of The Expendables, Bruce Willis returned for The Expendables 2, with Mr. Church taking on an expanded role. Willis was originally slated to return as Church in The Expendables 3, but a salary dispute led to him not returning. Willis was reportedly paid $3 million for the four-day shoot, but he wanted another million and Stallone refused his demands. 72 hours later, Stallone cast Harrison Ford as the drummer in The Expendables 3 and called Willis “greedy and lazy.”
Jean-Claude Van Damme
As part of the action hero ensemble that The Expendables actors entailed, The Muscles from Brussels was approached by Stallone. It is not entirely clear who Van Damme would have portrayed in The Expendables, but due to Van Damme not finding the story compelling, he ultimately declined Stallone’s offer. It would end up being a moot point within two years, with Van Damme joining The Expendables 2 as the villainous Jean-Vilain, which also reunited him with his frequent on-screen co-stars Scott Adkins and Dolph Lundgren.
Wesley Snipes
The Hale Caesar portion of The Expendables mini-canon was originally written for Wesley Snipes. Due to tax issues while he was in prison at the time, Snipes had to turn down the role. Snipes was subsequently seen in The Expendables 3 as Doc Death, who makes a meta joke about his real-life tax conviction after being rescued by his teammates, and Stallone’s Demolition Man co-star Wesley Snipes said as Doc Death that he was imprisoned. due to “tax evasion”.
Forest Whitaker
After Snipes had to turn down Hale Caesar in The Expendables, Forest Whitaker was originally slated to take on the role. Ultimately, scheduling conflicts forced Whitaker to pull out of The Expendables (via Slash Film). However, Whitaker would later appear alongside The Expendables co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 2013 action film The Last Stand.RELATED:
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50 Cent
50 Cent was also attached to play Hale Caesar in The Expendables after Snipes and Whitaker turned down the role. Although the official reason is unclear, 50 Cent ultimately did not play Hale Caesar, with Terry Crews eventually taking on the role. 50 Cent later starred alongside Stallone in the Escape Plan trilogy and eventually joined the franchise in The Expendables 4.
Terry Crews
Despite being a core member of the team in the first three Expendables movies, Terry Crews chose to sit out The Expendables 4. According to Terry Crews (via IndieWire), he was asked to drop a sexual assault charge by producer Avi Lerner, which Crews refused and instead left production.
Donnie Yen
Leading up to The Expendables 2, Donnie Yen has become a bigger star than ever thanks to the Ip Man films. Yen turned down the offer to star in The Expendables 2. Yen said: “They wanted me to do The Expendables 2, but I just didn’t feel like I liked the role. I was flattered that the producers approached me, but I just didn’t find the role they were asking me to be that intriguing” (via Coming Soon). Yen later joined John Wick: Chapter 4, expanding his martial arts ensemble as the John Wick series became a contender for The Expendables.
Antonio Banderas
The Expendables 2 also might have seen the involvement of Antonio Banderas, who was offered a role in the sequel. Scheduling issues would prevent Banderas from accepting the offer. “They asked me to do [‘Expendables 2’], I don’t think at this point I will have the time. I am very disappointed that it didn’t work out,” Banderas said. Despite this, Banderas would later join the franchise as Galgo in The Expendables 3.
John Travolta
During casting for The Expendables 2, John Travolta, whom Stallone directed in Stayin’ Alive, was also reportedly in talks about joining the Expendables franchise. Despite this, Travolta did not end up joining the sequel.
Nicolas Cage
At the same time Travolta was in talks for The Expendables 2, Nicolas Cage was also reportedly in discussions about joining the sequel. Stallone stated that scheduling the film’s production in Bulgaria was a barrier to the addition of Cage and Travolta. While no official reason has been given, this seems to be the likely reason why The Expendables 2 cast doesn’t include either of them.RELATED:
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Mickey Rourke
Rourke was part of The Expendables in the beginning, serving as the team’s confidante, Tool. Though there had been talks about Rourke returning for both The Expendables 2 and The Expendables 3, he ended up turning down both sequels. Instead of taking the role in Expendables 2, Rourke pursued a role in Seven Psychopaths. Liam Hemsworth’s character replaced Tool in the movie.
Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood was reportedly in some talks for both The Expendables 3 and The Expendables 4, but ultimately did not join either film. While the reasons for his absence are unknown, Stallone himself commented, “Well, you know, Clint is so passionate about what he does, so it’s kind of a pipe dream” (via Cheat Sheet).
Milla Jovovich
Resident Evil star Milla Jovovich was also reported to have been in negotiations for The Expendables 3. In the end, it seems a deal could not be reached, with Jovovich not appearing in the third movie in The Expendables franchise. Ronda Rousey joined the cast for the movie instead.
Jack Nicholson
While preparing The Expendables 3, Sylvester Stallone initially considered Jack Nicholson as the antagonist of the sequel. Per Stallone: “I was going to go [call] Jack Nicholson, but we got there too late because he actually said he might be interested.” acting, and the role of villain Conrad Stonebanks in The Expendables 3 eventually went to Mel Gibson.