Rambo 6 Needs To Finally Forget Stallone (Like Rocky)

Recently, the Ramboseries hasn’t had much success, and the only way for Rambo 6to work is to follow in the footsteps of Rocky and forget Sylvester Stallone. The two franchises are Sylvester Stallone’s most famous. While 2015’s Creed made the smart decision to move Stallone to a supporting role, 2019’s Rambo: Last Blood made the mistake of still starring the 76-year-old actor.

The first Rambo film, First Blood, follows Vietnam veteran John Rambo who, after returning home, is forced to battle against the police force of a small town. While it was originally intended to be a stand-alone film, the Rambo series now consists of five films – but none of them feel necessary. The most recent film, Rambo: Last Blood, was a critical and box office failure, showing that the franchise has truly lost its way. However, it is not irredeemable. If Rambo 6 were to happen, all they have to do is follow the path Rocky took.

Creed and Creed II are the latest entries in the Rocky series, and instead of focusing on Rocky Balboa’s boxing career, they actually follow Adonis Creed (son of Apollo Creed) as he is trained by Rocky. The Creed films have shown that focusing on younger talent and making Stallone a side character is the best way to go, as the new series has been met with acclaim that hasn’t been seen in the Rocky franchise for years. While Sly is still a fantastic actor, he’s just too old to star in an action movie, as Stallone’s recent superhero movie Samaritan has shown. The best way to do Rambo 6 would be to focus on a younger relative of another character in the franchise; Stallone can still be involved, but he shouldn’t be the main character. One possibility would be to focus on a relative of Colonel Trautman, a character that has acted as a father figure to Rambo since the first film. The series could be brought back to its roots, telling the story of a soldier dealing with PTSD – and Rambo can be the one to help them. By doing this, Rambo 6 would be following the pattern of Creed, potentially bringing the series back to life after all these years.

Will Rambo 6 Happen?

The fifth Rambo film came out in 2019, meaning there is still plenty of time for Rambo 6 to happen. However, a continuation of the series is more likely to take on a different format. A Rambo TV series has been in the works since 2013, and a November 2021 update revealed that the show was in active development, meaning that it is definitely moving forward despite the failure of Last Blood. As for a movie, though, things are still uncertain. Stallone has at different times said that Rambo 6 is or is not happening, leaving many unsure about the future of the franchise. The idea of a Rambo prequel has been thrown around by Stallone, mirroring his idea for the rumored Rocky prequel.

It seems certain that the Rambo series will continue, but not with a mainline Rambo 6. The future of the franchise will likely consist of prequels and TV shows, which is a good thing, as Last Blood shows that the interest in mainline films has clearly dried up. Signs are pointing to Rambo learning from Rocky and finally shifting focus away from Sylvester Stallone.