Category: Expendables

The Expendables Game w/ SZoner Input!

Craig / / 2011, Expendables

I was recently contacted by Rod J. Walters who is the lead developer on The Expendables game.  As you can see from the image above and many more on the site, Rod and his team are well on their way to creating one of the most realistic games possible.  Rod has asked me to come on as a detail advisor.  Rod also said that they have more positions available to fill within his team.  He’ll let us know about that. 

I’ve created a locked thread for Rod to communicate directly with SZoners on our StalloneZone Message Board.  This is a wonderful opportunity.  Let the fun begin!

 

 

 

Dolph Talks Expendables & More

Craig / / 2011, Celebs, Expendables, Expendables II, Rocky IV

On Wednesday, March 16, 2011, Jason Rugaard at Movie Mavericks posted an interview with Dolph Lundgren who happened to mention Sly a few times.  Here are a couple of tidbits:

  • Physically ‘Rocky IV’ was very special. We didn’t use any doubles, there was no CGI, and you couldn’t augment anything. We just had to be in great shape, and both Sly [Stallone] and I were…  I enjoyed ‘The Expendables’ too, even though I didn’t take my shirt off, I had to bulk up a bit because I was surrounded by guys like ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin and a few boys that aren’t exactly small. In cinema today there aren’t that many big guys around, but in that film we had a bunch.
  • J: Recently some footage surfaced of you and Stallone in Mexico. Internet speculation was that you were location scouting for ‘Expendables 2′. Can you comment on this? 

    DL: Ya, we were scouting a couple of locations, but I don’t think it will be shot there for whatever reasons. Though It will be filmed on multiple locations in France, China, and Ukraine. I’m not 100% sure when it will happen because Stallone is doing a couple of movies and I have a few other movies, but I’ll find out in the next couple of weeks.

  • I have always been grateful towards Stallone for giving me my shot in ‘Rocky IV’, and then again in ‘The Expendables’. Anytime he wanted to use footage of Ivan Drago, that was fine with me.
  • J: In early drafts of ‘The Expendables’ script your character was a clear-cut drug addict and psychopath. Was it a conscious decision to scale the character back? 

    DL: The original drafts were good, my character was a loose cannon a little more out there, but I think Stallone made the right decision by pulling him back a little. Some of it was cut out before it was shot, you kind of understood that he maybe had problems with drugs, but you weren’t sure. You never saw the guy use in the movie, I think that it made him easier to forgive. In the long term, I think it was a good choice.

You can read the full piece here.  Thanks to Jason Rugaard the great interview and heads-up! – Craig

 

 

 

Stallone “May Not” Makes Big News

Craig / / 2011, Expendables, Expendables II

On March 8, 2011, the Los Angeles Times posted a piece by Steven Zeitchik titled “The Expendables Aims to Come Back — But with Stallone in a Different Guise.”  Here are some tidbits…

  • The follow-up movie is a priority at producer Millennium Films, where it’s being developed by  Stallone, the creative force behind the original. But Stallone, who both starred in and directed the 2010 summer hit, isn’t, at the moment, planning on helming the new movie. Instead, he’s been meeting with directors to tackle the sequel,,,
  • The script for the new movie has been written by David Agosto and Ken Kaufman…
  • Made essentially outside the studio system and distributed by Lionsgate, “The Expendables” became a $275-million global grosser on the strength of an action-hero ensemble cast that included Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren and Steve Austin.

 

You can read the full piece here.

As you can imagine this made headlines at other sites:

 

 

SZ Exclusive: Sly in Brazil

Craig / / 2009, 2011, Expendables

I received the e-mail below and these photos earlier this week from SZoner, Toni C.

  • Hello Craig!My name is Toni Coutinho (SZoner tonibalboa) from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  Congratulations for excellent work in StalloneZone!

    I’d like to share with all fans of Sly some pictures I took with the cast of The Expendables during filming. Ok, I know this happened in 2009, but I’m sure everyone will enjoy… I met Sylvester Stallone! Unbelievable!!

    I am a member of a group of fans called Sly Squad and I am a friend of Osmar Daou, a brazilian SZoner.  I have more new photos of Sly.

    Thanks for your attention!

    Toni Coutinho

Thanks to Toni for sharing these cool photos.  We look forward to seeing more in the future! – Craig

Brian Stelfreeze: Barney Ross

Craig / / 2011, Craig's Sly Art, Expendables

Brian Stelfreeze.  Barney Ross from The Expendables.  What else needs to be said?  Simply enjoy the genius of Brian Stelfreeze.

Ok.  For those new to the show, Brian Stelfreeze is one of the most amazing artists working today.   He can do it all… pencil, ink, color, design.  I have never seen a bad piece by Brian.  Yet, he is one of the most humble, approachable and appreciative artists you’ll ever meet.  This is my second piece by Mr. Stelfreeze. [You can see my first here. Both are “cornerstones” of my collection.]  I hope it is not my last.

Expendables Truck Sells for $132 K

Craig / / 2011, Expendables

One of the trucks that Sly drove in The Expendables went to auction last week and sold for $132,000.  The truck, a 1956 Ford F-100 was fully customized by West Coast Customs to look like a 1955 model and sported a new 347 Edelbrock engine, B&M transmission,  Lexani 20″ rims with low profile tires, a  full Gibson exhaust system, and hidden storage compartment’s for Barney Ross’ weapons.  That’s right, folks, the truck came with hidden weapons compartments.

The story of the sale was picked up by…

Brian Tyler: “Rambo” & “The Expendables”

Craig / / 2011, Celebs, Expendables, Rambo

Moviehole recently interviewed Brian Tyler [pictured above with Sly], the composer behind the scores for “Rambo” and “The Expendables.”   Tyler is currently composing music for “Fast Five” and “Battle for LA” but took time out for the interview.  Here’s what he had to say about working with Sly:

  • Jonathon Urban: After a 20 year absence, Sylvester Stallone brought back one of his two iconic characters, John Rambo, in 2008’s “Rambo.” For over 25 years, Jerry Goldsmith’s name was synonymous with the epic scores for “First Blood”, “Rambo: First Blood Part II” and “Rambo III.” What was it like stepping into such a beloved franchise that also had such a well-known score?

    BT: Daunting! I wanted to honor the Jerry Goldsmith scores and incorporate those great themes into my overall tapestry which had new themes as well. Rambo is now older and wiser and that evolution needed to be reflected in the score.

    JU: There’s clearly a “hero theme” and not per se a “love theme,” but one that is clearly for the character of ‘Sarah.’ How did you come up with these?

    BT: Well the themes for “Rambo” took awhile to come up with. Hmm. I think I sat down at the piano and just went for it!

    JU: There are several classic Goldsmith cues that meld very nicely with your original work. Was there ever any challenge on working in the Goldsmith cues into your original pieces?

    BT: Well I wrote my themes to be compatible with Jerry’s themes. They worked together by design. My biggest challenge was composing next to a giant’s shadow.

    JU: And like you have done with several other directors, you scored your second film with Stallone, “The Expendables.” Before I ask you about “The Expendables”, it has to be a good feeling working again with a director you have worked with before. Do you feel that you and the director’s chemistry gets better with each film and that you’re able to compose a score that encompasses the director’s vision even more so?

    BT: There are a number of directors that I have worked with a number of times. Bill Paxton, Sylvester Stallone, Jonathan Liebesman, William Friedkin, Justin Lin, George Gallo, Greg Yaitanes, and others. It is always great to grow closer with a creative collaborator.

    JU: Okay, “The Expendables”, which was the macho movie of all macho movies. Were you Sly’s first choice to score the movie?

    BT: I was indeed. At least I was told that. (Laughing.)

To read the whole interview, click here.

Hennie Blaauw’s Barney Ross

Craig / / 2001, Craig's Sly Art, Expendables

Long time SZoner, Hennie Blaauw sent in the piece above with this e-mail:

Hi there,
Looong time hey… Just thought I’d send you something I did in my free time at the studio…should animate it one of these days..hehe.
Keep well, thanks for a rocking site!

Cheers

Hennie Blaauw
+++++
Thanks to Hennie for sharing his talents.  And, yes, we’d love to see it animated! – Craig

Thomas Boatwright: Barney Ross

Craig / / 2011, Craig's Sly Art, Expendables

I commissioned my first sketch from Thomas Boatwright in December of 2010.  It was this First Blood piece. Thomas finished it in less than a week and I totally loved it.  So I ordered two more pieces.  This sketch of Sly as Barney Ross from The Expendables is the second piece.  I have another that I will post in the near future of Sly as Jack Carter.  I totally dig them all and hope to get more art from Thomas for my collection later this year.

If you’d like to see more of Thomas Boatwright’s art check out his blog and his DA site. Send him some love.  If you get commissions, you should consider a piece from Thomas. He keeps you totally in the loop on his progress, finishes his commissions on or ahead of schedule, has very reasonable prices and is a fantastic artist! – Craig

Sly & “Diamond Eyes”

Craig / / 2011, Expendables

On January 6, 2011, Brent Smith of Shinedown spoke to The Pulse of Radio about their newly released video for their song “Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom Lay Boom) which was used on The Expendables trailer.  When asked why the song has “Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom” as a subtitle, Smith explained:

“When we wrote the song, Sylvester Stallone said, ‘You have to repeat in some kind of a chant form or an anthemic form, I need it if you can to have it go ‘boom-lay boom-lay boom.” ‘Cause it’s based off of a poem called ‘The Congo’ that he based a lot of the premise of ‘The Expendables’ off of,” he said. “In that poem, between each paragraph, it goes ‘boom-lay boom-lay boom’ and then it goes to the next section of the poem.”

Here are links to The Congo, one to the Shinedown video and the original article.