Summary

• Schwarzenegger's reluctance to do sequels like Commando 2 or True Lies 2 is irable, but perplexing compared to The Expendables.
• Despite skipping The Expendables 4, Arnold's loyalty to the franchise is commendable, even if it didn't showcase his talents well.
• Arnie's rejected Predator cameo might have been a better fit for his iconic status than The Expendables, despite the fun he had with friends.

Arnold Schwarzenegger action movies. The star had a knack for picking projects with great hooks, and having them tailored to his unique star branding. From Commando to Predator and even the lesser-sung likes of Eraser, Arnie always had an eye for concepts that tempted audiences into the theater.

This can be seen in the number of franchises Schwarzenegger's work created - even if he didn't return to many of them. Given how successful his movie career was, it's surprising to see how much Arnie avoided cashing in and making sequels to his biggest hits. Arnold ed on every Predator follow-up he was offered, and while sequels to Commando, True Lies and Conan were discussed, none of them moved ahead. Sequels to Jingle All The Way and Kindergarten Cop exist, but Schwarzenegger steered completely clear of them.

Schwarzenegger Came Back For Expendables Sequels, Breaking His Non-Terminator Streak

Arnold appeared in three entries in the action saga

Sylvester Stallone's The Expendables movies were designed to gather together the biggest names in the action genre, so Arnie had to be included. Schwarzenegger appeared in The Expendables as a favor to good friend Stallone and later returned for the second and third entries.

It should be noted that his appearances amounted to extended cameos, but outside of The Terminator franchise, The Expendables' Trench is the character he's reprised the most.

Schwarzenegger skipped The Expendables 4, and given how poorly that 2023 sequel was received, he made the right call. It's bizarre, given how many franchises the star ed on fronting, that The Expendables is the one that kept pulling him back. They were indeed less demanding of his time and he got to hang around with pals like Stallone, Bruce Willis and Jet Li, but there were other characters he would have been better served returning to.

Another franchise return Schwarzenegger unsurprisingly skipped out on was the 2022 reboot Eraser: Reborn.

So Many Schwarzenegger Franchises Deserved Sequels Before Expendables

The world needed Commando 2 or True Lies 2

On the whole, Schwarzenegger preferred chasing new concepts to returning for sequels. Terminator 2: Judgment Day proved to be the biggest hit of his career, but this was still during a time when sequels tended to gross less than their predecessors. Schwarzenegger's loyalty to The Expendables is irable, but unmade sequels like King Conan, James Cameron's True Lies 2 or even Triplets were more deserving of his time.

The Expendables movies also never gave Schwarzenegger a great showcase; he was often burdened with lame one-liners and had little in the way of screentime. Outside the thrill of seeing him beside former screen rivals Stallone and Willis, the series never knew what to do with him.

Even Arnie's rejected cameo in 2018's The Predator would have served him better, since it brought back Arnie's Dutch and made him feel like a mythic figure. Trench gave the star a chance to goof around with his pals and get well paid, and while he clearly had a good time making them, it's hard to credit that The Expendables is his second most revisited series.