Noah Centineo is headed to the jungle in a prequel to Sylvester Stallone’s basic Rambo motion film franchise.
The To All of the Boys actor will do extra kicking than kissing as he performs the younger model of Inexperienced Berets soldier John Rambo, who first appeared in creator David Morrell’s 1972 novel, First Blood, and was performed by Stallone in 5 blockbuster motion pictures. Jalmari Helander — the director behind groundbreaking motion hit Sisu — was employed by producers Millennium Media in March 2025 to convey an origin story by Black Adam writers Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani to life.
“After I was 11, I noticed First Blood for the primary time, and it modified my life,” Helander mentioned in January 2026. “Rambo wasn’t only a movie to me — it stayed with me rising up and was a defining affect on why I needed to turn into a filmmaker. As we start manufacturing on the origin of John Rambo, we’re going again to the start.”
The filmmaker went on, “That is Rambo stripped down, uncooked and actual — a survival story about endurance, persistence and misplaced innocence. It’s an honor to form this subsequent chapter with deep respect for the character and the legacy, and to convey audiences the beginning of John Rambo’s journey.”
Hold scrolling for extra details about John Rambo under.
Who Is Starring in ‘John Rambo’?
Noah Centineo leads the solid of John Rambo because the younger model of the army hero performed by Sylvester Stallone in 5 earlier motion pictures.
Whereas Centineo is finest identified for his rom-coms To All of the Boys I’ve Cherished Earlier than and The Good Date, he portrayed a Navy SEAL in 2025’s Warfare and can subsequent battle M. Bison’s forces of evil as Ken Masters within the upcoming Avenue Fighter reboot.
The Hollywood Reporter revealed in January 2026 that Centineo will share the display with Sinners star Yao, Quincy Isaiah (Profitable Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty), Jason Tobin (F9), Jefferson White (Yellowstone) and Tayme Thapthimthong (The White Lotus). Their roles will likely be disclosed at a later date.
What Do We Know Concerning the ‘John Rambo’ Plot?
John Rambo is ready a number of years earlier than the unique First Blood novel and its 1982 film adaptation starring Sylvester Stallone. First Blood takes place within the aftermath of Rambo returning residence from the Vietnam Conflict, so the prequel will naturally discover his wartime exploits.
In November 2025, John Rambo director Jalmari Helander addressed the methods his prequel will differ from different entries within the franchise.
“After all, it’s totally different, as a result of we’re gonna begin in a spot the place all the things is mainly fairly okay for Rambo,” Helander advised GamesRadar+. “He’s glad and youthful and all that, as a result of we’re telling the origin story.”
The director continued, “What would occur to him? Why did he turn into that sort of dude that we’ve all seen in First Blood? So it’s totally different.”
Lionsgate Movement Image Group president Erin Westerman supplied a bit extra info on how John Rambo will strategy its earlier timeline.
“We’re thrilled to begin manufacturing on John Rambo, which can permit each new audiences and current followers to discover John Rambo’s roots, his ideas, and most significantly, some unbelievable motion, courtesy of Jalmari’s singular imaginative and prescient,” Westerman advised The Hollywood Reporter in January 2026. “And we’re so excited for Noah’s dedicated and highly effective efficiency to point out what cast this character into legend.”
What Has Sylvester Stallone Mentioned About ‘John Rambo?’
Sylvester Stallone has been supportive of a John Rambo prequel prior to now — although he revealed to ScreenRant in September 2025 that he initially needed to make use of AI to play a youthful Rambo himself.
“I needed to do the primary AI … not retroactive … however I needed to rewrite historical past of the sooner Rambo as a result of I needed Rambo to be the nicest man within the faculty, the valedictorian, the promenade king, and all that stuff,” he revealed. “And when he goes to Vietnam, he thinks it’s going to be a three-week hit-and-run, and also you see him being tortured and captured, his mates murdered, one factor after one other, and [his] life in Saigon.”
Stallone added, “That’s how I turned the best way I turned, however initially I used to be bon vivant — that sort of factor. And I assumed, ‘We might do that with AI,’ however [we] procrastinated too lengthy they usually took it over and, I hope, you understand, good luck.”
Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo Lionsgate/Courtesy Everett Assortment
In February 2024, Stallone revealed on The Tonight Present Starring Jimmy Fallon that Ryan Gosling was his preferred choice to play a younger John Rambo.
“[Ryan] goes, ‘I used to be fascinated by Rambo, and I used to go to highschool dressed as Rambo, and other people would chase me away and I nonetheless didn’t cease. I’d trip as Rambo,’” Stallone advised host Jimmy Fallon. “He simply saved saying that he had numerous affiliation with Rambo.”
The motion star then teased, “I assumed, ‘You recognize, that is attention-grabbing. If I ever cross the baton, I’ll cross it on to him as a result of he loves the character.”
A Rambo prequel starring Gosling by no means got here to cross, as Noah Centineo was unveiled because the franchise’s new lead in August 2025, reported Deadline.
When Will ‘John Rambo’ Be Launched?
No launch date has been introduced for John Rambo but. Manufacturing kicked off in Bangkok, Thailand, in January 2026.
