Sylvester Stallone is positive about the status of the Rambo prequel. The career of the iconic actor, writer and director has spanned more than five decades and shows no sign of stopping.
Beginning with 1982’s First Blood, Stallone turned the character of John Rambo into one of his most iconic roles, joining the echelons of his immortal role as Rocky Balboa. Over 40 years, the seasoned Vietnam veteran has battled everyone from the Soviet Russians in Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rambo III to the Mexican cartel in 2019’s Rambo: Last Blood.
While these sequels have their fans, the far-fetched concepts are a far cry from the somewhat grounded drama that made the original First Blood such a beloved film in the ’80s action pantheon.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Stallone made it clear to fans that he remains optimistic about making a prequel based on the life of John Rambo. However, the actor seems a little unsure about the direction the prequel might take. See what Stallone had to say below:
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I think it’s going to happen. I wanted to do it like a Ken Burns documentary on Vietnam, where you drop young Rambo in there, and he’s this outgoing guy, football captain, and then you see why he becomes Rambo. But what they want to do is a modern-day story where I pass the torch. That’s getting close.
What the Rambo Prequel Could Add To The Character
Rambo has often been a very solitary and silent character, with only hints of his true vulnerability showing in moments like the heart-wrenching final scene in First Blood to the first act of the most recent entry, Rambo: Last Blood. While it might be shocking to longtime fans to read Stallone’s ideas of presenting a young Rambo as an outgoing “football captain,” that approach might be just what the prequel needs to add further depth to an often one-note character. Furthermore, seeing Rambo as a young soldier and how he develops a relationship with a young Colonel Trautman (his mentor throughout the first three films) could make for some engaging drama.
Although Rambo: Last Blood was a moderate success at the box office in 2019, many critics and fans were somewhat unhappy with the nihilism and violence that the latest film perpetuated. With a ridiculous amount of gore and a rather regressive political bent, perhaps a more character-driven prequel, as Stallone hints, could bring back the heart the series has been missing since the earlier Rambo installments. Whatever the approach, fans should be happy to hear that John Rambo’s story appears to be far from over and that Stallone himself will have a hand in his return.