Over the years, we have seen Clint Eastwood being a part of some of the renowned cult classics of Hollywood. Be it the Dollars trilogy or the Dirty Harry franchise, the beloved ‘Man with No Name’ has a history of portraying some iconic roles. He is not only popular among the fans but also to many A-list stars. Such a name is Sylvester Stallone. But sadly, the Rocky fame could never work with his idol, as Eastwood had different plans of his own.
The Expendables is a franchise that has seen a ton of big names from Hollywood coming together on the big screens. Clint Eastwood was also approached to star alongside Sylvester Stallone for the third installment of the film, which was eventually turned down by the Pale Rider star.
Why Clint Eastwood turned down Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables 3?
Clint Eastwood is not a prominent name in the field of acting, but the legend also has an immense contribution to directing. He has directed some of the most memorable movies such as Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby in his long directorial career. When the 92-year-old actor was approached to appear in the ensemble action flick, he expressed his interest to rather direct it.
In an interview with Contactmusic.com, when the Oscar-winning director and actor was asked about his involvement in The Expendables 3, Eastwood took no time to state his thoughts.
”Probably not. I’m probably more apt to direct something. Maybe I’ll direct ‘Expendables 3’. I haven’t had the opportunity to see [‘The Expendables’] yet. I haven’t read any material.”
Earlier, Sylvester Stallone has also spoken about the difficulties of bringing so many big names under a common umbrella. This also led to the franchise losing some of the biggest names such as Jack Nicholson and Jackie Chan. But on the other hand, Sylvester Stallone revealed that he knew about the consequence of the casting decision for a long time- “Well, you know Clint is so involved with what he’s doing, so that’s kind of a pipe dream.”
Despite the franchise’s inability to bring in every action star from the industry, The Expendables 4 is all set to hit the theaters this year with a future plan for the franchise knocking on the door.
What do we know about The Expendables 4?
Even after having a wide fan following, The Expendables 3 was not a very good product, attracting a lot of negative reviews as well as earning a lot less than its predecessors. Despite that, the franchise is returning with its fourth installment which will present Sylvester Stallone’s Barney Ross for one last time.
Many names such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jet Li, and Terry Crews will not return for the upcoming part. Among the regulars, only Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, and Randy Couture are expected to return, with Statham’s Lee Christmas set to be the primary character this time. Interestingly, Jackie Chan was also approached for this part but he revealed that he would be more interested in an action flick with only Stallone and not with an ensemble cast.
The Scott Waugh directorial is also expected to introduce Andy Garcia, Megan Fox, Curtis Jackson, Jacob Scipio, Iko Uwais, and Tony Jaa as new additions to the franchise. The Expendables 4 is also set to start a new trilogy and will try to revive the franchise’s popularity among everyone.
The Expendables 4 will be released on September 22, 2023.