Expend4bles, aka The Expendables 4, has been officially rated by the MPAA. Per FilmRatings.com, the sequel is rated R for “strong/bloody violence throughout, language, and sexual material.” The rating isn’t exactly a surprise, though some filmgoers weren’t quite sure the film would be R-rated, given how Expendables 3 had been rated PG-13. Expend4ables getting an R rating brings the franchise back to its roots, as the original film and The Expendables 2 were both R-rated before the third installment brought a softer rating to the series.
This will also be the first movie in the Expendables series in nearly a decade. After the first and second installments were respectively released in 2010 and 2012, The Expendables 3 rounded out the original trilogy in 2014. Expend4bles marks the dawn of a new era for the franchise, as while there are some returning stars, they’re mixed with new blood to help take control of the story. Sylvester Stallone returns in a limited capacity alongside Randy Couture and Dolph Lundgren, and Jason Statham steps into more of the leading role with his return as Lee Christmas. New cast members include Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Megan Fox, Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais, and Andy Garcia.
Scott Waugh directs Expend4bles using a screenplay by Kurt Wimmer, Tad Daggerhart, and Max Adams. In the film, per the synopsis, “Armed with every weapon they can get their hands on, the Expendables are the world’s last line of defense and the team that gets called when all other options are off the table.”
Related: The Expendables: The 10 Best Characters in the Franchise, Ranked
Expend4bles Will Include Plenty of Bloody Violence
Lionsgate
There might be some returning stars along with the R rating, but one mainstay of the series who won’t be featured is Arnold Schwarzenegger. The actor previously confirmed he wouldn’t be in the movie, explaining in a Parade interview that he’d only done the previous movies as a favor to his pal Stallone. Schwarzenegger said he still wants to pursue another collaboration with Stallone, but felt it was best to leave the Expendables franchise behind for the next generation to take over with the series.
“It’s done and I’m not in it,” he said. “I said, ‘You know what, we have done this and I’m out of it.’ And [Stallone] really understood. I did [the first Expendables] as a favor to Sly. I shot it on a Saturday for two hours quickly in a church with Bruce Willis. Sly said, ‘Oh, can you do Expendables 2?’ and I did that for a weekend. Then it was expanded for Expendables 3. And that was it. We’re going to do something together one day.”
If the fourth movie is a success in theaters, then there may be more sequels yet to come, perhaps with Statham continuing to lead the way with new cast members. Whether the film will be as big of a hit as producers are hoping for remains to be seen, but going back to the R rating is a good start, given the negative fan reception to the PG-13 rating of the previous movie.
Expend4bles will be released in movie theaters on Sept. 22, 2023.
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