The Rambo prequel has finished its shooting schedule, and the Sylvester Stallone-produced movie has just revealed one of its villains. Stallone announced in March that he was coming back to the Rambo franchise, but only as a producer. Stallone revealed at the time that he possessed the recent script, which makes it sound like he will have a little more of a hands-on approach than many stars with producer labels. There is also a chance that Stallone could appear, either in a bookend way or in some other appearance that would allow him to appear in the new release. Noah Centineo will play Rambo as a young man, and now the villain has been cast.
Variety reports that James Franco has signed on to play a villain in the new Rambo prequel. Directed by Jalmari Helander (Sisu), this prequel will take place before 1982’s First Blood and will show Rambo while serving in the American armed forces during the Vietnam War. This will mark Franco’s first villain role in a blockbuster since he appeared in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 as Harry Osborn/The Green Goblin.
James Franco Joining Rambo Prequel
James Franco’s career hit a major roadblock when sexual misconduct allegations arose against him. Franco denied all the allegations, but he came to a settlement with the women for more than $2 million in 2021. However, it seems like Franco is trying to make his Hollywood comeback. Franco was at the Cannes Film Festival with his longtime girlfriend Izabel Pakzad, and he told Variety that he had just wrapped a “big studio movie” that he said was going to get a 2027 release. Variety then learned that the movie was John Rambo, the Rambo prequel movie.
This is the first studio production for Franco since The Deuce was on HBO, and that show ended in 2019. Franco took a full four-year break from acting before returning for the French thriller The Price of Money: A Largo Winch Adventure and the Italian drama Hey Joe, both of which were released in 2024. He also has a Fidel Castro biopic called Castro’s Daughter coming. The last big studio movie for Franco was The Ballad of Buster Scruggs in 2018.
In addition to Centineo as Rambo, Franco is also part of a cast that includes David Harbour as Rambo’s commanding officer, Major Sam Trautman. The movie actually began filming in January and wrapped earlier this month. The Rambo origin story also features Yao, Jason Tobin, Quincy Isaiah, Jefferson White, and White Lotus breakout star Tayme Thapthimthong. Franco’s role is described as a “small villain” role, so it is unclear how much his name will be associated with the movie.
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