The Expendables (2010 film)

The Expendables,

is an upcoming ensemble action/war film written by Dave Callaham and Sylvester Stallone, and directed by Stallone. Filming began on March 28, 2009, in Rio de Janeiro, New Orleans, and Los Angeles, and is expected to be released on August 13, 2010. The film pays tribute to the blockbuster action films of the 1980s and early '90s, and stars an array of action veterans from those decades, including Stallone himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke, and Jet Li, as well as more recent stars such as Jason Statham, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, and Steve Austin.

Plot

A team of highly-trained, dangerous mercenaries are sent on a mission to a South American country, with the objective to overthrow a cold-blooded dictator. As the mission begins, the mercenaries discover that the situation is not as it appears.

Cast

The Expendables

Sylvester Stallone as Barney "The Schizo" Ross, a paramilitary veteran and leader of the team.

Jason Statham as Lee Christmas, second in command of the team. He is a former SAS soldier and expert at close quarters combat.

Jet Li as Yin Yang, a Chinese martial arts expert.

Dolph Lundgren as Gunnar Jensen, a Swedish sniper.

Terry Crews as Hale Caesar, Yin's best friend and a heavy weapons specialist.

Randy Couture as Toll Road, demolitions expert.

Mickey Rourke as Tool, a former Expendable, now an arms dealer and tattoo parlor artist/owner.

Other characters

Charisma Carpenter as Lacy, Lee Christmas' fiancee.

Bruce Willis as Mr. Church, the man who hires the Expendables.

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Trench, an old rival of Ross and the former leader of the original Expendables.

Gisele Itié as Sandra, a young native woman and undercover Interpol agent.

Lauren Jones as Cheyenne, Tool's love interest.

Garza's men

David Zayas as General Garza, the dictator.

Eric Roberts as James Monroe, a rogue CIA agent.

Steve Austin as Dan Paine, Monroe's bodyguard.

Gary Daniels as The Brit, General Garza's main henchman and a former Expendable who wants to go to war and get revenge against the team for kicking him out.

Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira as General Garza's sword wielding henchman.

Amin Joseph and Senyo Amoaku as the leaders of a group of Somali pirates that challenge the Expendables in the beginning of the film.

Production

Production began on March 3, 2009, and filming began on March 28, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and other locations included Mangaratiba, Niteroi, Guanabara Bay, Colônia Juliano Moreira and Parque Lage. Filming ended April 25. Filming continued later on May 11, in Elmwood, Louisiana and New Orleans, Louisana, including the French Quarter, St. Peters Street, Fort Mccomb, Claiborne Avenue and the Interstate 10 Overpass. Filming officially ended on July 1, 2009. On October 27, 2009, there was a pick-up scene at a church in Hollywood featuring Stallone, Schwarzenegger, and Willis. On June 2, West Coast Customs Street Customs built three customized 1955 Ford F100s for Sylvester Stallone for the film. One was built for a crash scene, the second for green screen, and the third for Stallone to keep. "The Expendables has a seventy million-dollar budget," says Stallone's co-star Dolph Lundgren, adding, "It's an old-school, kick-ass action movie where people are fighting with knives and shooting at each other."

Casting

Jean-Claude Van Damme was personally offered a role by Stallone, but turned it down because he felt there was no substance to his character. Stallone said that Van Damme told him that he should "be trying to save people in South Central."Dolph Lundgren was cast next.

The role of Hale Caesar was initially conceived as a role for Stallone's Demolition Man co-star Wesley Snipes, but later rewritten for Forest Whitaker.Due to a scheduling conflict prior to filming, Whitaker was then replaced by 50 Cent for the role of Hale Caesar before the role finally went to former NFL player Terry Crews.

Steven Seagal was asked to make a cameo appearance, but turned down the offer due to negative experiences with producer Avi Lerner.

By May 2009, the script had undergone a number of re-writes. Stallone's Demolition Man co-star Sandra Bullock was rumored to have a role in the film, but revealed that she did not even know about the project. Despite the news, she did express interest in working in another action film and would have liked to appear in the film depending on the storyline.

The role of the man who hires the Expendables, Mr. Church, was very difficult to cast. Initially offered to Schwarzenegger, he declined in favor of a smaller cameo due to his political career. The role was then offered to Kurt Russell, whose agent replied that he was not interested in "ensemble acting at the moment."Stallone spent several months after principal photography determined to find a big action name for the part. Rumors suggested that the role had been offered to friend and fellow former Planet Hollywood co-owner Bruce Willis, who was busy filming Cop Out. Willis' casting as Mr. Church was confirmed by August 2009, as was the fact that he would appear in a scene with both Stallone and Schwarzenegger.

Music

Composer Brian Tyler announced on his official website that he has been hired to write original music for the film. Tyler previously worked with Stallone on Rambo in 2008. Sully Erna from Godsmack is writing a song called 'Sinner's Prayer' for the movie. It is scheduled to be released September 14, 2010.

The American hard rock band Shinedown has also contributed a brand new track, recorded specifically for the movie, which is also used in the theatrical trailer. The song is entitled "Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom)", and was released on June 22, 2010.

The score for the film will be released on August 10. The tracklists have been revealed.

The Expendables

Aerial

Ravens And Skulls

Lee And Lacy

Massive

The Gulf Of Adem

Lifeline

Confession

Royal Rumble

Scanning The Enemy

The Contact

Surveillance

Warriors

Trinity

Waterboard

Losing His Mind

Take Your Money

Giant With A Shotgun

Time To Leave

Mayhem And Finale

Release

The film had an original scheduled release date set at April 23, 2010, but was later pushed back four months until August 13, to extend production time.On March 17, 2010, the official international poster for the film was released.

A promo reel (aimed at industry professionals) was leaked online in August. Sometime in October, nearly two months after the promo trailer was leaked, it was officially released online. The promo trailer was edited by Stallone himself and it was shown at the Venice Film Festival. On April 1, 2010, the official theatrical trailer for the film was released. The film had its red carpet premiere on August 3, 2010. It has streamed live through myspace, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Comic book

A comic book prequel to the movie published by Dynamite Entertainment was released in May 2010. It was written by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Esteve Polls, with cover art by Lucio Parillo. The story focuses on the Expendables' mission in Nigeria.[

Source:The Expendables (2010 film)