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Your Guide to The Expendables

News
09 July 2015
M-Net Movies looks at the good guys, the bad guys and more from The Expendables.
expendables 2

Browse through our indispensable Expendables’ guide and make sure you’re ready for action.

The Good Guys

Based on an idea by film writer David Callaham, and co-written with director and star Sylvester Stallone, The Expendables was intended as an homage to action blockbusters from the ‘80s and ‘90s.

Jason Statham, Jet Li and Dolph Lundgren – along with former American footballer Terry Crews and MMA champion Randy Couture – play an elite band of mercenaries led by Stallone. There’s extra help from former boxer and ‘80s heartthrob Mickey Rourke, with Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger popping in for an all-important meeting with Sly.

In the second instalment, the team is back with help from Yu Nan, Liam Hemsworth (kind of) and…Chuck Norris. Franchise heroes Harrison Ford, Antonio Banderas and Wesley Snipes add their skills to the mix in the third movie – with the help of Greek god-playing Kellan Lutz, MMA star Ronda Rousey and boxer Victor Ortiz.

The Bad Guys

Playing to (stereo)type in the first movie is a villain in the shape of a Latin American dictator; while the second round presents the aptly named Jean Vilain. The third chapter gives us Conrad Stonebanks, a fellow founder of the expendables who has gone rogue.

These roles respectively went to super-serious TV actor David Zayas (from Dexter and Oz); kickboxing streetfighter, universal soldier and time cop Jean-Claude Van Damme; and Mel Gibson, who apparently is not too old for this…stuff.

No villain would be complete without a minion and the scowling but impressively skilled henchmen come in the form of retired wrestler Steve Austin and martial artist actor Scott Adkins, who has black belts in Taekwon-Do and kickboxing.

The Mission

To film in as many awesome locations as possible: from Rio de Jainero, Los Angeles and New Orleans to Hong Kong, Bangkok and Bulgaria.

The Names

The entire franchise is very tongue-in-cheek, providing lots of laughs along with the action. However, some of the humour is like hitting your funny bone – it hurts, but you can’t help laughing. One of the priceless gems is the atrocious names the characters are saddled with such as Toll Road, Hale Cesar and Lee Christmas.

Chuck Norris

Chuck Norris…we tried writing more, but digital holes started burning on the screen.

Swear Jar

While we’re on the subject of Norris, it’s worth mentioning that although the expendables are action heroes who can crush you like a bug underfoot, the Chuck believed they needed their mouths washed out with soap.

Consequently, the second instalment is the least sweary of the lot, because Norris refused to make it unless the cuss-riddled script was cleaned up. Apparently he was OK with the violence.

The Triumvirate

Friends, rivals, business partners – ‘80s action heroes Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Willis have been almost everything to each other, except co-stars. The Expendables finally gave them a chance to be on screen together – until the third instalment.

Willis was kicked out the group after refusing to accept $3 million for three days’ work, wanting $4 million instead. He should have taken a page out of Arnie’s book: The Governator did his cameo in the first movie for free.

Will they make amends? Will there be a fourth instalment? Will there ever be action heroes like them in future? We just don’t know. Which is why we’re going to enjoy it while it lasts.