First Expendables 4 Footage Offers Everything You'd Expect From A Big Sequel

As the 1970s turned to the 1980s, Hollywood faced a dramatic shift as far as audience attitude went. People wanted machine guns, massive explosions, and larger-than-life personalities in their movies, and so began the rise of the action hero. Actors like Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chuck Norris, and more became household names in this era, starring in macho franchise after macho franchise. Naturally, as the 1990s and 2000s took hold, the golden age of the action genre came to a close, but that's not to say these now-cinematic icons faded into obscurity with it.

Decades after their heyday had concluded, action veterans like Stallone and Dolph Lundgren, alongside more modern stars such as Jason Statham and Terry Crews, launched the "Expendables" franchise. This big-screen series is all about celebrating the Hollywood action legends of yesteryear while highlighting their successors through hard-hitting throwback adventures. All in all, they're far from the most artistic works of cinema out there, but at the end of the day, they're more about recapturing the magic of a bygone era than breaking new ground anyway.

Over the years, many moviegoers have come to appreciate the "Expendables" saga, hence why it's about to add a fourth film to the lineup. CinemaCon 2022 hosted a first look at the project, and it sure does sound exciting.

Talks of a fourth "Expendables" entry — now styled as "Expend4bles" — date back to 2014, shortly after the release of "Expendables 3." As the years went on, especially after Sylvester Stallone announced his departure from the sequel in 2017, many began to wonder if it would ever arrive at the movies. Thankfully, he returned to the production the following year, and once again the film felt like a real possibility. Principal photography then commenced in October of 2021, and so for CinemaCon 2022, installment four of the "Expendables" series managed to take the spotlight.

As reported by Slash Film, franchise newcomer Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson stopped by the event via video message to show off the "Expend4bles" reel. It kicks off with Stallone's Barney Ross letting us all know that being an Expendable isn't an easy life. From there, he's shown crashing a plane through a train tunnel, ignoring Lee Christmas' (Statham) plea not to do so. "It Was All A Warmup for This," flashes across the screen as we then get a brief look at Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais, Megan Fox, and Dolph Lundgren in action before the trailer ends with a grand explosion.

At the time of this writing, "Expend4bles" lacks a concrete release date, though Lionsgate plans for it to arrive in 2022. If that's the case, expect footage, plot details, and more to hit the internet sooner rather than later.