Rambo (franchise)
Rambo is an American media franchise centered on a series of action films. There have been five films released so far in the series: First Blood, ', Rambo III, Rambo and '. The films follow John Rambo, a US Army veteran played by Sylvester Stallone, who is traumatized by his experience in the Vietnam War, and uses the skills he gained there to fight corrupt police officers, enemy troops and drug cartels.
The franchise has its roots in the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell. Stallone co-wrote the screenplays of all five films, and directed Rambo.
The film series has grossed $819 million in total, with the most successful film, Rambo: First Blood Part II, grossing $300 million.
In addition to films, the franchise also spawned an animated television series, , and a series of comic books, novels, video games and a Bollywood remake.
Films
''First Blood'' (1982)
Upon returning to the United States, Vietnam veteran John Rambo has difficulty adjusting to civilian life and wanders the country as a drifter for almost a decade. In December 1981, Rambo travels to a small town in rural Washington, in search of a fellow U.S. Army Green Beret buddy. He learns that his friend died from cancer the previous summer due to exposure to Agent Orange.He attempts to find a diner in town, and maybe a temporary job. The overconfident town sheriff Will Teasle does not welcome Rambo, judging the military hero negatively because of his long hair and scruffy look. Rambo disobeys the sheriff's order to stay away from town, as he has done nothing wrong and believes such banishment to be a violation of his freedom of movement, and most of all he is hungry. Rambo returns to town soon afterwards and is promptly charged with vagrancy and subject to harassment from the deputies.
The harassment triggers flashbacks of Rambo's memories of his torture at the hands of the North Vietnamese when he was a prisoner of war. Rambo fights his way out of the sheriff's department with his bare hands and makes his way into the wilderness. A manhunt ensues, with the sheriff and his deputies all badly wounded. Rambo chooses not to kill any of them, but unintentionally kills a police officer in self-defense by throwing a rock at a helicopter, causing the pilot to lose control and an officer to fall out. The State Police and National Guard are called in.
Colonel Samuel Trautman, Rambo's former commanding officer, arrives. He suggests giving Rambo a chance to escape; if Rambo is allowed to slip away, he'll be given time to calm down and he can be arrested without incident. Teasle allows Trautman to contact Rambo through a stolen police radio, but Rambo refuses to surrender, stating that "They drew first blood not me" and then hangs up.
The authorities reject Trautman's recommendation for a wait-and-see attitude and continue the manhunt, and Rambo's subsequent rampage culminates in him returning to town with guns and bombs from a commandeered Army truck. This results in the destruction of the sheriff's office and more of the town's main street. Rambo stands poised to eliminate the sheriff, but Trautman finally confronts Rambo face-to-face, and ultimately convinces his former soldier to surrender to the authorities.
Between the first and second films, Rambo is convicted and remanded to a civilian maximum-security prison where hard labor is the norm. Despite being a convict, the rigid routine and discipline of prison life provides Rambo with some measure of much-needed stability, as it reminds him of his past in the military and its own rigid hierarchy.
''Rambo: First Blood Part II'' (1985)
The film opens with Colonel Samuel Trautman offering Rambo his freedom if Rambo will return to Vietnam to search for American prisoners of war remaining in Vietnamese captivity. Marshall Murdock, the official in charge of the mission, is portrayed as a corrupt political figure who doesn't want to expose the truth. Rambo is not to engage the enemy and instead is ordered to take photographs of a North Vietnamese camp, the same camp he himself had been held prisoner in, to prove to the American public there are no more POWs in Vietnam, although Murdock knows that there are.Rambo is flown into the country with the purpose of parachuting into the jungle, but a malfunction during his exit from the plane causes him to have to cut away much of his equipment. He then meets his in-country contact, anti-communist Vietnamese rebel Co Bao, who is serving as an intelligence agent. Rambo discovers that there are POWs being held in the camp where he was dropped and that POWs were rotated between camps. Rambo breaks one POW out of the camp and attempts to escape, only to be abandoned at the moment of a pick up by helicopter on a hilltop on the orders of Murdock, after which both he and the POW are recaptured by the Vietnamese soldiers. Rambo is immobilized in a pit of sewage and leeches, then tortured by Soviet soldiers, who are allied with the Vietnamese and training Vietnamese soldiers. Co enters the base under the guise of a prostitute for hire, where she aids Rambo in escaping. After Rambo expresses his deepest gratitude for his rescue, the two share a kiss, after Co implores him to take her back to America with him. As they prepare to move on, Co is shot by surprise gunfire.
Enraged, Rambo then acts on his own initiative and starts a one-man war, hunting the Vietnamese and Soviet soldiers searching for him in the jungle and stealing a Soviet-captured helicopter. He flies the helicopter back to the camp, destroying it and killing the remaining Vietnamese and Soviet soldiers in the camp. He frees all the POWs and is pursued by a Soviet Mi-24 Hind helicopter. After destroying the Hind with an RPG, he returns to the US base in Thailand with all the POWs. Rambo is enraged at how the United States government has ignored the existence of surviving soldiers being held captive, and grabs an M-60 machine gun and proceeds into the headquarters building, destroying all of the electronic gear within. Rambo then threatens Murdock and tells him to be forthright with the American public regarding the truth of the POWs and to spare no expense in rescuing them all, or else he will return for Murdock. When Trautman says Rambo will be honored once again, he declines, saying the POWs deserve the accolades more. For his actions in Vietnam, Rambo is granted a presidential pardon and decides to remain in Thailand.
Between the second and third films, Rambo takes up residence near a monastery where he engages in frequent meditation to find a sense of inner peace. Although Rambo believes his soldiering days are apparently over, he does not become a complete pacifist, as he often participates in violent stick-fighting matches and donates his winnings to the monks to help renovate the monastery.
''Rambo III'' (1988)
The film opens with Colonel Samuel Trautman returning to Thailand to once again enlist Rambo's help. After witnessing Rambo's victory in a stick-fighting match, Trautman visits the temple Rambo is helping to build and asks him to join him on a mission to Afghanistan. This brings Rambo into the realm of the CIA's Special Activities Division which primarily hires Army Special Forces soldiers. The mission is meant to supply weapons, including FIM-92 Stinger missiles, to Afghan freedom fighters, the Mujahideen, who are fighting the Soviets. Despite having been shown photos of civilians suffering under Soviet rule, Rambo refuses and Trautman chooses to go on his own.While in Afghanistan, Trautman's troops are ambushed by Soviet troops while passing through the mountains at night. Trautman is imprisoned in a Soviet base and tortured for information by commanding officer Zaysen and his henchman Kourov. Rambo learns of the incident from embassy field officer Robert Griggs and immediately flies to Pakistan where he meets up with Mousa, a weapons supplier who agrees to take him to a village deep in the Afghan desert, close to the Soviet base where Trautman is kept. The Mujahideen in the village are already hesitant to help Rambo in the first place, but are convinced not to help him when their village is attacked by Soviet helicopters after one of Mousa's shop assistants informed the Russians of Rambo's presence. Aided only by Mousa and a young boy named Hamid, Rambo makes his way to the Soviet base and starts his attempts to free Trautman. The first attempt is unsuccessful and results in Hamid getting shot in the leg, and Rambo himself getting hit by wooden shrapnel. After escaping from the base, Rambo tends to Hamid's wounds and sends him and Mousa away to safety.
The next day, Rambo returns to the base once again, just in time to rescue Trautman from being tortured with a flamethrower. After rescuing several other prisoners, Rambo steals a helicopter and escapes from the base. The helicopter crashes and Rambo and Trautman are forced to continue on foot. After a confrontation in a cave, where Rambo and Trautman kill several Russian soldiers including Kourov, they are confronted by an entire army of Russian tanks, headed by Zaysen. Just as they are about to be overwhelmed by the might of the Soviet Army, the Mujahideen warriors, together with Mousa and Hamid, ride onto the battlefield in a cavalry charge, overwhelming the Russians despite their numerical and technological superiority. In the ensuing battle, in which both Trautman and Rambo are wounded, Rambo manages to kill Zaysen by driving a tank into the helicopter in which Zaysen is flying.
At the end of the battle Rambo and Trautman say goodbye to their Mujahideen friends and leave Afghanistan to go home.
Between the third and fourth films, Rambo still lives in Thailand, making a meager living as a snake catcher and by providing boat rides.
''Rambo'' (2008)
The film opens with news footage of the crisis in Burma. Burma is under the iron fist rule of Than Shwe and takes harsher stances against the nation's pro-democracy movement. Rebels are thrown into a mine-infested marsh and then gunned down by a Burmese army unit, overseen by Major Pa Tee Tint.Former U.S. soldier John Rambo still lives in Thailand, now residing in a village near the Burmese border and makes a living capturing snakes and selling them in a nearby village. A missionary, Michael Burnett, asks Rambo to take him and his associates down the Salween River to Burma on a humanitarian mission to help the Karen people. Rambo initially refuses but is convinced by another missionary in the group, Sarah Miller, to take them.
The boat is stopped by pirates who demand Sarah in exchange for passage. After taking advantage of the pirates' complacency, Rambo kills them all. Although his actions save the missionaries, it greatly disturbs them. Upon arrival, Michael says that they will travel by road and will not need Rambo's help for the return trip. The mission goes well until the Burmese army, led by Major Tint, attacks the village, killing most of the villagers and two missionaries, and capturing the rest. When the missionaries fail to come back after ten days, their pastor, Arthur Marsh, comes to Rambo to ask for his help in guiding hired mercenaries to the village where the missionaries were last seen.
Troubled by Sarah's potential fate, Rambo decides to accompany the soldiers. After seeing the destroyed village filled with mutilated humans and animals, the mercenaries spot some soldiers forcing several surviving villagers to run through a minefield. The mercenaries are hesitant to rescue the villagers, but not Rambo, who shoots the soldiers with a bow and arrow. Rambo reminds his colleagues of the rescue mission and encourages the team to move on. Hijacking a truck, they create a plan to save the hostages at the P.O.W. camp, doing so within fifteen minutes to avoid alerting the army. Rambo helps Sarah and the others to escape.
The Burmese Army unit finds their hostages missing and organizes a massive manhunt. Everyone except for Rambo, Sarah, and "School Boy", the mercenary team's sniper, is captured. Just as the group is to be executed, Rambo hijacks a truck-mounted.50-caliber machine gun and engages the Burmese army. A group of Karen rebels joins the fight to help Rambo and the mercenaries defeat the Burmese unit. Seeing that the battle is lost, Major Tint decides to flee, only to run into Rambo's machete, which Rambo then uses to disembowel the Major.
Encouraged by Sarah's words, Rambo returns to the United States. The last scene shows him walking along a rural highway, past a horse farm and a rusted mailbox with the name "R. Rambo" on it. He makes his way down the gravel driveway as the credits roll.
''Rambo: Last Blood'' (2019)
Eleven years after the events in Burma, Vietnam War veteran John Rambo lives in Bowie, Arizona at his deceased father's horse ranch, which he manages with his old friend, Maria Beltran, and her granddaughter, Gabriela. Gabriela tells Rambo that a friend of hers, Gizelle, has found Gabriela's biological father, Miguel, in Mexico. Both Rambo and Maria tell her not to go to Mexico, but Gabriela secretly drives there to ask Miguel why he abandoned her and her mother years ago. Gizelle leads Gabriela to Miguel's apartment, where he coldly tells her that he never really cared for Gabriela or her mother.Gizelle takes a heartbroken Gabriela to a nearby club, where Gabriela is drugged and kidnapped by the enforcers of a Mexican cartel. Meanwhile, Maria informs Rambo of Gabriela's disappearance in Mexico. Rambo rushes to Mexico and interrogates both Miguel and Gizelle about Gabriela's whereabouts. Gizelle reluctantly leads Rambo to the club where Gabriela was last seen and confronts El Flaco, the man who last spoke with Gabriela. A mysterious woman, Carmen Delgado, tails Rambo as El Flaco leads him to Gabriela's location. Rambo is immediately confronted, beaten and marked by the cartel, led by the brothers Hugo and Victor Martinez. They take his driver's license with the location of Rambo's ranch and a photo of Gabriela, whom Victor recognizes. The cartel vow to mistreat Gabriela further due to Rambo's actions.
Carmen takes Rambo back to her home where she cares for him until he fully recovers after four days. While Rambo is cared for by Carmen, Gabriela is stripped and consistently dosed with heroin and sold to be raped repeatedly. Carmen says she is an independent journalist who has been investigating the Martinez brothers, who kidnapped and murdered her sister. Rambo later raids one of the brothels, killing several men until he finds a drugged Gabriela. While driving back home in his pickup, Rambo thanks Gabriela for giving him hope for ten years but she dies from the forced overdose. An enraged Rambo sends Maria away and rigs the ranch with traps for a confrontation, and later returns to Mexico to ask Carmen's help in finding Victor. Carmen initially refuses and tells Rambo that it will solve nothing, but is convinced after he appeals to her grief and frustration.
Rambo raids Victor's home, killing several guards and decapitating Victor. In retaliation, Hugo leads a large train of 7 SUVs filled with mercenaries to Rambo's ranch, but each eventually falls victim to Rambo's rigged traps. Saving Hugo for the last, Rambo mutilates him and rips his heart out, killing him instantly. In the aftermath, a weakened Rambo sits on the porch of his father's house, vowing to continue fighting and keep the memories of his loved ones alive. During the credits, flashbacks to scenes from the first four movies in the franchise are shown, with Rambo finally saddling up his horse and riding off into the sunset.
Future
During Cannes 2019, Stallone said he would continue portraying Rambo if the fifth film succeeds. Grunberg, however, said that Rambo: Last Blood "closes the circle", hoping it would conclude the film series. In September 2019, Stallone confirmed that he has plans for a prequel to the series; although he would not reprise the title role, he would like to explore who Rambo was before the war:Stallone has expressed interest in having Rambo take refuge in an Indian reservation for the sixth Rambo film. In June 2020, Stallone briefly elaborated on the idea, stating, "If I ever did another one, I think he would go back to the Indian reservation that he grew up on because he has Indian family."
Cast and crew
Cast
- This table shows the characters and the actors who have portrayed them throughout the franchise
- Italics indicate the actor only appears in flashbacks via archive footage from previous films
- A dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film
Crew
Reception
Box office performance
Critical and public response
Music
| Title | U.S. release date | Length | Composer | Label |
| First Blood: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | 1982 | TBA | Jerry Goldsmith | TBA |
| Rambo: First Blood Part II | 1985 | TBA | Jerry Goldsmith | TBA |
| Rambo III: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | 1988 | TBA | Jerry Goldsmith | TBA |
| Rambo: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | 2008 | TBA | Brian Tyler | TBA |
| Rambo: Last Blood | 2019 | TBA | Brian Tyler | TBA |
The original scores for the first three films were composed and conducted by Jerry Goldsmith. The music from the first and second films was performed by the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the music from the third by the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra. Goldsmith's main theme for Rambo was the basis for the end title song "It's a Long Road", performed by Dan Hill, part of the First Blood soundtrack.
The music for the first film is harsher and more dissonant than that for the sequels, as is keeping with the tone of the film. As such, it bears more of a resemblance to Goldsmith's output of the 1960s and 1970s than it does most of his work in the 1980s. The first film's score does use electronics but is primarily orchestral while the sequel scores incorporate heavier use of electronics. The second film's score is the most popular, being that it is the most exciting. The music in the third film is an extension of the style used in the second, but with a few new themes. Both sequels feature new themes for Rambo that are based on elements found in the original "It's a Long Road" theme, which is also heard in its original form in each film as well.
Because Goldsmith died in 2004, film composer Brian Tyler scored the fourth film. He reassured fans at the time of Goldsmith's death that his score would be based on Goldsmith's cues for the first three films. Tyler later returned to score the fifth film Rambo: Last Blood.
The 2008 film, Rambo, was advertised with Drowning Pool's "Bodies" and features two songs in the film written and performed by Jake La Botz, who portrays the mercenary "Reese" in the film.
The theme music for 1986 animated TV series, Rambo: The Force of Freedom came from a Jerry Goldsmith's scores for First Blood and Rambo: First Blood Part II were licensed for use in the series and tracked throughout, with his music for the film's trailer for Rambo: First Blood Part II, used as the opening and closing themes. It was supplemented by original music composed by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy, who received an "additional music by" credit.
Soundtracks with music from the films were also released. The soundtracks for First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo and Rambo: Last Blood are available on iTunes. However, the soundtrack for Rambo III is not available on iTunes. For more on the music of the Rambo franchise, see the "Music" section below.
Home media
All five existing films in the Rambo franchise are available from Lionsgate by virtue of the studio's output deal with StudioCanal and Lionsgate itself co-producing the latter film. Paramount Pictures holds the television rights to the first three films, while Debmar-Mercury handles television distribution for the latter film on behalf of parent company Lionsgate.| Title | Format | Release date | Films | Reference |
| Rambo Collector's Pack | DVD | July 24, 2001 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III | TBA |
| Rambo: The Complete Collector's Set | DVD, Blu-ray | July 27, 2010 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III, Rambo | TBA |
| Ultimate Rambo Collection | Blu-ray | October 28, 2013 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III, Rambo | TBA |
| Rambo Classic Trilogy Collection | DVD | January 1, 2014 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III | TBA |
| Rambo: Trilogy – The Ultimate Edition | Blu-ray | September 28, 2015 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III | TBA |
| Rambo Complete Collection | DVD | March 1, 2016 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III, Rambo | TBA |
| Rambo: Trilogy | DVD, Blu-ray | November 15, 2018 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III | TBA |
| Rambo: 5-Film Collection | Blu-ray | February 11, 2020 | First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III, Rambo, Rambo: Last Blood | TBA |
Other media
Novelizations
, author of the original First Blood novel, wrote novelizations for the first two Rambo sequels. Morrell has said that he wrote the novelizations because he wanted to include characterization that he felt wasn't in Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rambo III. Morrell did not write a novelization for the 2008 film, Rambo, as he felt the film's characterization matched that of the original First Blood novel.Comic books
In 1986 an Italian series of comic books inspired by Rambo was published, Rambo Adventures by Giorgio Pedrazzi.In the late 1980s, Blackthorne Publishing published a few comics starring the character. One, titled Rambo III, adapted the film of the same name. Rambo III was also published in a 3D version by Blackthorne.
Also, there was a comic simply titled Rambo featuring other adventures of the character.
Television
was an animated series that ran in 1986 in which John Rambo leads a team called The Force of Freedom to fight an evil organization called S.A.V.A.G.E.. 65 episodes were aired. Rambo and the Forces of Freedom spawned a line of toys.Video games
Various licensed video games for various arcade and home console systems were released:Rambo – Based on Rambo: First Blood Part II. Released in 1985 for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, and Commodore 64
– Based on Rambo: First Blood Part II. Released in 1986 for Master System
Rambo – Based on Rambo: First Blood Part II. Released in 1987 for the NES
Rambo III – Based on Rambo III. Various games released in 1989 for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Master System, Arcade
Rambo III – Based on Rambo III. Released in 1989 for the arcades
Rambo – Based on Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rambo III. Released in 2008 for Sega 2-player light gun game
– Based on First Blood, Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rambo III. Released in 2014 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3
Bollywood remake
In May 2013, Original Entertainment confirmed to have sealed a five-picture deal with Millennium Films to produce Bollywood remakes of First Blood, The Expendables, 16 Blocks, 88 Minutes, and Brooklyn's Finest, with the productions for First Blood and The Expendables expected to start at the end of that year.In early 2016, Siddharth Anand was announced as the director and the film will be co-produced by Anand, Daljit DJ Parmar, Samir Gupta, Hunt Lowry, Saurabh Gupta and Gulzar Inder Chahal. The film will specifically remake First Blood and will follow the last member of an elite unit in the Indian Armed forces returning home only to discover a different war waiting for him, forcing Rambo to the jungles and mountains of the Himalayas and unleash mayhem and destruction.
In May 2017, Tiger Shroff was cast in the role of Rambo while production was schedule for a late 2018 release date. By October 2017, the film was placed on hold while Shroff and Anand complete other projects.
The film is scheduled to be released in October 2020, with Shroff expected to star in Hindi remakes of all five films in the Rambo franchise.
Legend
Among the Kamula of Wawoi Falls in Western Province, Papua New Guinea, Rambo was very popular in the late 1990s.His figure was imported into local legends.
For example, Rambo is rumored to have de-escalated the Bougainville conflict.
Rambo is also said to have had sex with the daughter of the Queen.
When threatened with execution, a PNG lawyer pleaded in his favor.
As a result, Rambo promised to help Papua New Guinea in the Third World War.