Stallone steps away from Rambo revival series, won’t be involved in ‘any way at all’

By Christine Persaud December 7, 2015

Sylvester Stallone wears a bandana in Rambo. — Orion Pictures

Despite earlier reports that suggested that Rambo himself, Sylvester Stallone, would return to the franchise to executive produce the upcoming Fox TV series based on the iconic ‘80s movie franchise, new reports indicate that the aging action man won’t, in fact, be involved with the project at all, reports Deadline.

Called Rambo: New Blood, the one-hour Fox series will reportedly be about the life of Rambo and his relationship with his son, a former Navy SEAL. It is being produced by Entertainment One and Millennium Films, and will be written by Jeb Stuart, the screenwriter for Die Hard.

That storyline just screams for Stallone to reprise his role as the former Green Beret and Vietnam Vet, with a penchant for guerrilla warfare. How, after all, could anyone but Stallone be called Rambo? But alas, Deadline quotes Stallone’s reps who said the actor has “opted not to participate in the planned Rambo television series in any way at all.”

“I wish the others well with the project,” added Stallone himself.

It was believed back in 2013 when the show was first confirmed to be in the works that, not surprisingly, Stallone was being courted to be part of it. And just last week, the actor was reportedly listed as an executive producer in the show’s credits. But it appears that is not the case. Which potentially leaves the future of Rambo: New Blood in limbo.

Should it go forward, the show would mark the fifth incarnation of the Rambo character, which is based on the novel First Blood, written by David Morrell. There have been four Rambo movies to date. A fifth film is in production called Rambo: Last Blood, which Stallone has confirmed that he will be part of. There’s no word yet, however, on when it will be released.

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Christine Persaud

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Christine has decades of experience in trade and consumer journalism. While she started her career writing exclusively about…

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