Sylvester Stallone has confirmed production is moving ahead on spinoff The Expendables: A Christmas Story, and here’s why that’s a better plan than a fourth film. The original Expendables arrived in 2010 and focused on a crew of mercenaries led by Stallone’s Barney Ross. The movie was sold as a return to the old-school action movies of the 1980s, with a focus on practical action and stunts. It also united an impressive cast of genre icons, including such Expendables as Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren and cameos from Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The movie was a decent-sized hit and two sequels followed, which added even more legendary figures like Jean-Claude Van Damme, Wesley Snipes and Harrison Ford. The Expendables 3 unwisely made a bid for younger viewers by toning down the bloodshed for a PG-13 rating. This backfired, however, with the sequel receiving the worst notices of the franchise, in addition to being the lowest-grossing. For years, talk of The Expendables 4 has cropped up, but the next entry is instead a spinoff focusing on Statham’s Lee Christmas.
Stallone took to Instagram recently to confirm The Expendables: A Christmas Story – which is a working title – is set to film in October 2021. No story details have been revealed, though a report from The Illuminerdi in 2020 that first revealed the spinoff was in development teased that Sylvester Stallone’s Expendables role would be reduced compared to past entries but Barney’s part would be an “emotional” one. While followers of the series might be disappointed with the star’s smaller role, it’s a good thing for both the franchise and Stallone.
Despite being pitched as more of an ensemble, the first three Expendables have heavily focused on Stallone’s Barney. In the last entry, for instance, it was his quest for revenge on former member Stonebanks (Mel Gibson) that drove much of the story, with Stallone shouldering an impressive amount of the action sequences. The actor is advancing in years, however, and it only makes sense to switch focus to Statham’s Christmas. The friendship between the duo has been a big element of the series, and Jason Statham is still at the top of his game when it comes to action projects.
The Expendables: A Christmas Story may see Barney transition to more of a mentor role, rather than leading the titular team. In addition to dialing down the physical requirements of the role, Stallone has already proved with the Creed spinoffs that he can be the emotional backbone of a story without having to take center stage throughout. The star did some of the best work of his career with 2015’s Creed, balancing both the iconic status of Rocky as a character while delivering an intensely moving turn as the aging ex-boxer.
The Expendables: A Christmas Story appears to be setting up a similiar situation with Barney. It’s also a smarter move than The Expendables 4, as the series could use some retooling. There were far too many supporting characters in the third movie, which also moved in a cartoonish direction. This spinoff could focus on the elements that work while positioning Statham as the new leader. A more character-driven, smaller-scale story could be just what the property needs for a clean start.