Isn’t it just cosmic how technology and storytelling collide—kind of like a Mercury retrograde stirring up all kinds of drama? Today, we’re diving into the wild what-if world where Sylvester Stallone almost used AI to give John Rambo—yes, that grizzled Vietnam vet—a makeover so drastic it would’ve rewritten his origin story. Picture this: Rambo, not scruffy and battle-hardened, but the prom king, valedictorian, the school’s sweetheart before everything went sideways. Stallone dreamed up this charming flip using cutting-edge AI, betting on a fresh spin that would twist the Rambo mythos into something almost unrecognizable. But, as fate would have it, procrastination (and maybe a little cosmic interference) handed the reins to a new Rambo project, leaving Sly on the sidelines with his bold vision shelved. Could AI really reshape Hollywood legends, or is some history just too wild to rewrite—even by robots? Let’s unravel this tangled reel of ambition, tech, and a whole lotta “what if” right here. LEARN MORE
They drew first blood, not me…We’ve seen how AI can be used in the entertainment industry for both good and bad. One such way that has had varying results is de-aging, with artificial intelligence being utilized to turn the actor younger with “organic” results (or, at least, that’s the intention…). We’ve seen it with Jeff Bridges, Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford, and so many other big names. And one who almost joined them was Sylvester Stallone, who tried to alter the Rambo character in a prequel using AI.
Stallone recently chatted with Screen Rant where the topic of the Rambo prequel was brought up. As Sly told it, he was going to rely heavily on some controversial technology to change a lot of what we knew about John Rambo. “I wanted to do the first AI… not retroactive… but I wanted to rewrite history of the earlier Rambo because I wanted Rambo to be the nicest guy in the school, the valedictorian, the prom king, and all that stuff. And when he goes to Vietnam, he thinks it’s going to be a three-week hit-and-run, and you see him being tortured and captured, his friends murdered, one thing after another, and [his] life in Saigon. And that’s how I became the way I became, but originally I was bon vivant–that kind of thing. And I thought, ‘We could do this with AI,’ but [we] procrastinated too long and they took it over and, I hope, you know, good luck.”
By they, Stallone is referring to those behind the actual planned Rambo prequel, to be produced by Millennium Media, who also made 2008’s Rambo and 2019’s Rambo: First Blood. That movie will star Noah Centineo as the titular character. Not a whole lot is known about that movie, but if it opens with Johnathan James Rambo being crowned prom king, we know we’re on the absolute wrong track…Stallone, for his part, will have zero involvement whatsoever.
What do you make of Stallone’s plan to rewrite history by using AI for his scrapped Rambo prequel? Give us your take on it in the comments section below!
Auto Amazon Links: No products found.
This will close in 0 seconds
This will close in 0 seconds