Lionsgate is heading into the jungles to tell the origin story of John Rambo. We know who’ll be playing the iconic lead role, and who’ll be directing the action, but until now, we didn’t know when fans would actually be able to see it. The movie finally has a release date, but don’t hold your breath just yet.
John Rambo will be released in theaters on June 4, 2027. That puts it in the heart of a summer movie season that’s just starting to fill up with would-be blockbusters. A week earlier, on May 28, the all-new Star Wars movie Starfighter, directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, is rocketing to theaters. A week later, John Rambo will contend with the live-action sequel How to Train Your Dragon 2. However, as a brutal and presumably R-rated action movie, John Rambo is targeting a different demographic, and may have some space to breathe before more like-minded competition hits the multiplexes.
What Do We Know About ‘John Rambo’?
John Rambo is a prequel, detailing Rambo’s service as a Green Beret in the rain forests of Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. Noah Centineo (The Recruit) will star as the younger Rambo, while his commanding officer Sam Trautman, played by Richard Crenna in the original Rambo movies, will be played by David Harbour (Stranger Things). It will also star Yao (Sinners), Jason Tobin (Warrior), Quincy Isaiah (Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty), Jefferson White (Yellowstone), and Tayme Thapthimthong (The White Lotus); James Franco (Spider-Man) will also have a role in the film, marking his first mainstream project in several years. It filmed on location in Thailand earlier this year, and wrapped production in March.
John Rambo is directed by Jalmari Helander, the Finnish action maven known for helming Sisu and its sequel, Sisu: Road to Revenge. It is written by Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani, the screenwriting duo behind The Mauritanian and Black Adam, based on characters created by author David Morrell in his 1972 novel First Blood. It is produced by Kevin King Templeton, Les Weldon, Jonathan Yunger, Angela Russo-Otstot, and Michael Disco, and executive produced by Anthony & Joe Russo, Trevor Short, Dallas Sonnier, Amanda Presmyk, and Sylvester Stallone, whose performance as Rambo in First Blood and its sequels made the character an action icon.
John Rambo will premiere in theaters on June 4, 2027.
via Collider