Keeping it real with Rambo

Action movie fans are breathing a sigh of relief today, safe in the knowledge that one of their favourite franchises isn't about to jump the shark after all.

It turns out that Sylvester Stallone has had second thoughts about his plans for the next installment in the Rambo series, and decided to ditch the rumoured 'sci-fi' angle.

The writer/director/actor/California Raisin was emboldened by the success of Rambo's long-awaited comeback last year, and was keen to maintain momentum with another chapter in the story of the unkillable Vietnam veteran. 


Having bought the rights to a novel called Hunter by James Byron Higgins, Stallone was hoping to merge the sci-fi story with the ongoing adventures of the world's oldest bandana-wearer.

In Sly's mind, the next Rambo movie would have seen the iron-jawed hero battling a genetically altered mutant. But someone pointed out that it was a bad idea, perhaps out of concern that the audience would have trouble differentiating one from the other.

Instead, the 63-year old will battle villainous Mexicans in a "violent city where many young women have vanished", helping to maintain the franchise's commitment to verisimilitude. After all, the last thing we need in a film series that once depicted one-man army bringing down the Afghan military by shooting a gunship with a bow and arrow, is a preposterous sci-fi element.