It’s been half a decade since we last saw a new movie in scheduled to begin this month since last summer. Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Jason Statham are all expected to return for the latest installment, and as with the previous sequels, the fourquel will likely bring in a new roster of action movie legends to the ensemble. Rumors have been running wild about casting, so here are 10 Action Movie Legends We Want To See In The Expendables 4.
10. Steven Seagal
Out of all the action stars to have appeared in The Expendables franchise, there’s one legend who can always be counted on to ham it up in a pulpy, testosterone-fueled thriller who still hasn’t made an appearance and that’s Steven Seagal. Seagal has openly stated that he’ll never be in an Expendables film due to problems he has with unnamed cast : “I just [don’t] like some of the people involved. Life is too short to work with funny people.” Still, there’s nothing wrong with wishful thinking. And if he doesn’t like them, maybe he could play a villain – then his performance will seem authentic.
9. Kurt Russell
We got a semi-Tango and Cash reunion in Fast & Furious have both brought Russell back into the mainstream in the past few years, it’s the perfect time for him to jump on The Expendables franchise. It could even get meta if he plays an old associate of Stallone’s character Barney Ross and some Tango and Cash quotes are recontextualized.
8. Danny Glover
We got one side of the famous Mel Gibson played the villain in the third one. So, why not bring in the second half of the iconic buddy cop pairing, Danny Glover, for the fourth one?
Glover is not primarily an action star, but the Lethal Weapon movies are mentioned in the first minute of any discussion of the greatest action films of all time, so that grants him enough clout in the action cinema community to make a big splash in the cast of The Expendables movies.
7. Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel’s status as an action movie legend had not quite been solidified back in 2010 when the first Expendables movie was released. In fact, it was still up in the air when the second one was released in 2012 and the third one was released in 2014. But now that Fast & Furious is Riddick franchises are gaining some traction, and he’s also appeared alongside Sylvester Stallone in the MCU, it might be time for Diesel to their ranks as a younger (but not much younger) member.
6. Danny Trejo
Back when the first Expendables movie was going into production, it was widely reported that Heat into the mix. But for real this time, not just another misreported casting that disappoints fans when it turns out to be false.
5. Gerard Butler
It must be tough casting the new stars ing an Expendables movie. They have to be big enough for people to care, but not big enough that it’s weird that they’re part of a team. This is what discounts the A-list lone wolves like Nicolas Cage or Denzel Washington or Tom Cruise – those guys can carry a whole movie on their own in their sleep. Gerard Butler has the perfect amount of fame – and Has Fallen movies – to fit right into one of these old-school team-ups.
4. Liam Neeson
No one is knocking it out of the park as an action hero more regularly than Liam Neeson these days. Over the past 11 years, he’s Taken trilogy. So, it’s high time he ed The Expendables franchise as “an old friend” to win back some of that star power.
3. Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan is an action movie legend of the highest order. Like Stallone, he doesn’t just star in his movies – he also writes and directs a lot of them. Chan has actually been offered roles in previous Expendables movies and he keeps turning Stallone down.
He explained why: “This morning, I did hear – the office called – Sly [Stallone] wants me for Expendables 4. I said, ‘Okay,’ because they already asked me to be in 2 and 3, but I refused. Well, I didn’t refuse, but I said, ‘Sly, can’t we just do you and me? Not just a bunch of people and me only coming out for five minutes.’ Because then the audience is, ‘Oh!’ And then I’m gone.” Here’s hoping he’ll change his mind about being a member of a huge action legend team by the time The Expendables 4 finally goes into production.
2. Keanu Reeves
When The Expendables franchise first started in 2010, Keanu Reeves was already a hugely respected name in action cinema from roles in movies like the only way The Expendables 4 will be able to keep up is by having the ever-committed Keanu Reeves in its cast, impressing all the stunt coordinators with his dedication.
1. Dwayne Johnson
Having officially shaken his wrestling roots, Dwayne Johnson is a prime candidate to The Expendables franchise. He’s got the rippling muscles, the action hero charisma, and he’s in enough insane high-concept action movies (fighting a giant gorilla, fighting an active torpedo, fighting an earthquake, etc.) to qualify for the cast. In fact, he’s one of the only actors today keeping the spark of hope alive for the existence of every action movie fan’s dreams.
