The fourth Expendables movie will focus on Jason Statham's Lee Christmas, and it could be a passing of the torch to him from Sylvester Stallone.
By Brad Curran
The Expendables franchise is moving ahead with a spin-off focused on Jason Statham's Lee Christmas, and it could be the point where the series passes its leadership mantle to him. The gimmick of 2010's The Expendables was its testosterone-drenched throwback to 80's and 90's action movies, with Sylvester Stallone leading an ensemble that included formidable action stars Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, and Randy Couture. The Expendables 2 dove even harder into this macho premise with a returning main cast beefed up with appearances by Bruce Willis and action movie darling Arnold Schwarzenegger after their cameos in the original, as well as Jean-Claude Van Damme, Scott Adkins, and Chuck Norris coming aboard. While The Expendables 3 rounded up the biggest ensemble yet (including but not limited to Antonio Banderas, Wesley Snipes, Ronda Rousey, and Mel Gibson), the decision to finally hit the hard-R franchise with a PG-13 led to its downfall.
While The Expendables 4 has been discussed and teased at various points in the years since, nothing solid has come of it until the news of the Lee Christmas-centric spin-off. The decision to go with a spin-off rather than a direct sequel is likely related to the dream team's composition, which started to changing since the third film. Jet Li, in particular, has primarily focused on philanthropic work, with his role in the series as Yin Yang already making a noticeably early exit by The Expendables 2. Meanwhile, Stallone, following a career's worth of injuries including a hairline fracture in his neck on The Expendables, has gradually moved into less action-heavy roles.
At the same time, Statham's career in action films has only gotten bigger since, especially with his role as villain-turned-anti-hero Deckard Shaw in the Fast & Furious series. With the spin-off of The Expendables to be centered on Lee Christmas, it could be more than just the series switching gears to put the spotlight on one specific Expendable. Here's why The Expendables spin-off, reportedly titled A Christmas Story, could pass the torch of leadership from Stallone to Statham.
While the gimmick of The Expendables from the start has been the ultimate action star ensemble, Barney Ross has been the leader of the pack. That isn't to say the other Expendables and their various antagonists haven't made an impression over the course of the series. Dolph Lundgren's return to the spotlight since his Ivan Drago days can be pinpointed directly to his portrayal of the volatile Gunner Jensen, Terry Crews has been the series' main source of comic relief as Hale Caesar, and, following his appearance in The Expendables 2, the rise of Scott Adkins to mainstream action movie stardom was noticeably accelerated. Yet, even so, Barney Ross has remained the team captain.
When the Expendables are called for their next mission, Barney's the one summoned by Bruce Willis' Mr. Church (or Harrison Ford's Max Drummer.) Barney's also been chief coordinator of everything when the team heads into action. Typically, he has been the Expendables' rep in the final hand-to-hand fights with Jean Vilain (Jean-Claude Van Damme) or Conrad Stonebanks (Mel Gibson). With all of that said, there are signs that Barney could be headed into retirement as the leader of the Expendables. Part of that comes from Stallone's own career in the past few years.
Stallone Has Been Easing Into Mentor Roles
While Stallone's stayed busy in action films, like the Escape Plan movies and Rambo: Last Blood, he's also started taking on projects with less of a physical burden, including voice roles in films like Rachet & Clank and as the ravenous King Shark in The Suicide Squad. The real transition Stallone's made though has been in the very role that launched his career, with Rocky Balboa's mentorship of Adonis Creed in the Creed movies.
Stallone's performance as the mellow and seasoned Rocky in both Creed movies has been possibly his most widely praised in the current phase of his career, even winning him a Golden Globe for his performance in the first. Through both films, Rocky has been both a boxing mentor and a calm voice of reason to the hot-tempered Adonis, and while the Creed spin-offs became Michael B. Jordan's breakout, they also showed that Stallone is as well-suited to portraying mentors as his Rocky, Rambo, and Expendables roles, and even his possible cameo in Creed III shouldn't be discounted. As Stallone could be preparing to settle into roles more in the mentor vein in the future, the Expendable most groomed to assume command of the team in the next installment is obvious.
Jason Statham Taking Over The Expendables Makes Sense
When it comes to the other Expendables, Lee Christmas is the clear choice to take the reins from Barney. Aside from Stallone, Statham has been the most significant player in The Expendables series, and the one with the most prominent character arc in his relationship with his girlfriend Lacy, portrayed by Charisma Carpenter, as Lee withheld his profession as a mercenary from her, causing a strain on their relationship. Only after Lee's retaliation against her new boyfriend for beating her does Lacy come to realize what he does for a living, and though her role in The Expendables 2 was brief, she's had the chance to adjust to his dangerous, clandestine line of work. Lee's friendship with Barney has also been a central element of The Expendables, making the case that much greater for him to take center stage.
Jason Statham himself was already a well-known presence in action movies with The Transporter and Crank films, and he's gone on to become one of the quintessential action stars of the modern era, as audience responses to Deckard Shaw's first appearance in the end-credits scene of Fast & Furious 6 can attest to. Statham's even been paired with The Rock in the Hobbs & Shaw corner of the Fast Saga, with #JusticeForHan following Shaw there, so a passing on of leadership of the Expendables could be on the cards with Statham now effectively having reached a similar stride as Stallone had with Rocky and Rambo. At the same time, that doesn't mean that Barney will be out of the series completely.
Stallone's Possible Role In Future Expendables
Though Lee might become the new focal point of The Expendables with the spin-off, Barney is set to be present in some capacity, and it could be how the franchise adjusts to their respective new roles. Barney, now possibly entering retirement, could take on a similar role to Mickey Rourke's Tool in the first movie, helping to liaise new missions the Expendables take on and passing on his battlefield wisdom to new recruits, with Tool never having returned to the series after the first film. While he could theoretically pop up to lend a hand here or there similar to Booker (Chuck Norris) in The Expendables 2, Barney's experiences leading the team on many missions both seen and unseen could be where he transitions to after passing the torch to Lee.
Considering their close friendship throughout the first three films, Barney and Lee would probably maintain their connection with Lee now in command of the team, Lee probably seeing Barney as a supportive ally as he enters his new leadership role. Essentially, the series could do for Barney Ross what Creed did for the aging Rocky over his lifetime of a story, albeit from slightly different angle. While Barney would be a source of mentorship to new, incoming Expendables, he and Lee have always been equals on the team. With their history together, Barney would be the guy Lee would feel compelled to call up to offer new recruits a pep talk or map out how to escape their latest impossible escapade with his long history as a mercenary.
With both Stallone and Statham attached to The Expendables spin-off, it's very unlikely to ditch the series' ensemble trademark. Still, the focus on Lee and at least the theoretical possibility of the Christmas Story working title being utilized in some way surely hasn't gone unnoticed, and it could point to the bigger plans for the Expendables series' revival in part 4. When The Expendables spin-off lands, audiences could finally see Barney Ross step down as the leader of the mercenary team, and passing it onto the best man for the job, none other than his closest brother-in-arms, Lee Christmas.
Source: Screenrant
No comments:
Post a Comment