'The Expendables' spin-off with Jason Statham's character at the center to begin production soon
While there have been enough reports about a fourth 'The Expendables' being produced, there isn't much of an official word ever since Terry Crews exited the franchise. In what comes as welcome news for fans, Now, an Illuminerdi report says that there will be a spin-off featuring Jason Statham's character, Lee Christmas, at its center. The report also said that Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) will appear in the film, but would only be part of a few scenes. It is tentatively titled 'The Expendables: A Christmas Story' written by Max Adams. It also stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tony Jaa.
The report also added there was room for the franchise's other big names to come in. While 'The Expendables' may have always been about heavy-artillery wielding mercs with cheesy one-liners, they were major box-office successes. The third installment was the most poorly received but grossed $214 million worldwide on a budget of roughly $100 million. Statham is not new to being a major lead in spin-offs. He was starred alongside Dwayne Johnson in the 'Fast and Furious' spin-off, 'Hobbs and Shaw'.
Statham played Deckard Shaw, a mercenary formerly with British Special Forces and MI6 and Hattie's brother, who remains at odds with Hobbs (Johnson) but joins forces with him in order to protect Hattie (Vanessa Kirby). The movie grossed over $760 million worldwide, becoming the tenth highest-grossing film of 2019. The film received generally positive reviews from critics. Coming back to the spin-of, there is no news as to when the film would release and who would be directing it, but production is expected to start soon.
Last year, writer and star Sylvester Stallone announced that he had started to "cook up the next adventure".