What do you get when you take all your childhood action heroes, mix them up with newer ones, and try to make a movie? You get the first installment of The Expendables (2010). No doubt, it was one of the selling points of the movie. The nostalgic feeling you get watching them come together on a mission is something better felt than told.
The film received mixed reactions from critics but did excellently well at the Box Office. Turning an $80 – 82 million budget into $274.5 million in two hundred million more reasons to go for a sequel and start a film series. So, the movie produced The Expendables 2, The Expendables 3, and The Expendables 4 is set for release in September 2023.
To the success of its first movie, The Expendables, here are the cast and characters.
Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone)
credit: The Expendables
Sylvester Stallone plays Barney Ross, former U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Air Force, and leader of The Expendables. As the mercenary group’s leader, he chooses the missions the team embarks on. He’s closest to Lee Christmas on the team.
His weapon of choice is guns. He’s the fastest shooter and re-loader on the team. He has an open rivalry with Trench Mauser, another professional mercenary.
Lee Christmas (Jason Statham)
credit: The Expendables
Ain’t no action-hero group without Jason Statham. Statham plays the character Lee Christmas, the Second in Command of The Expendables. He’s a former SAS soldier with knives as his choice of weapon. Not only is he the team’s deputy, but he’s also a close friend of Barney Ross.
Yin Yang (Jet Li)
credit: The Expendables
It goes without saying that Jet Li’s character, Yin Yang, is a master at martial arts. Yang doesn’t believe in killing for the fun of it. He rather chooses to use his enemy’s weakness against him. Typical of Jet Li’s character, Yang doesn’t talk much.
Gunner Jensen (Dolph Lundgren)
credit: The Expendables
Dolph Lundgren plays Gunner Jensen, the loose cannon in the group. He’s got a short temper and behaves irrationally as a result of drug abuse. After his behavior in Somalia, Barney Ross decides to drop him from the team.
To get his revenge, he teams up with the enemy to help identify his teammates. However, he eventually makes up for it towards the end of the movie.
Toll Road (Randy Couture)
credit: Toll Road
If you need to blow anything up, you can trust Toll Road to have the right sets of explosives to do the job. You can also count on him to crush windpipes any day, any time. His closest team member is Hale Caesar.
Hale Caesar (Terry Crews)
credit: The Expendables
Hale Caesar is one of the muscles on the team. You can count on him to provide the heavy weapons for the missions. He’s closest to Toll Road on the team but is also friends with Yin Yang. Terry Crews may not be your everyday action hero, but he’s got the muscles to make the team.
Tool (Mickey Rourke)
credit: The Expendables
Mickey Rourke plays the character Tool and is the team’s tattoo artist. He also provides them with the needed weapons for the mission. He loves knives and occasionally engages in a healthy knife-throwing competition with Christmas, Lee, and Doc.
Mr. Church (Bruce Willis)
credit: The Expendables
Bruce Willis isn’t a part of the mercenary team, but he plays the role of an undercover CIA agent. He hires mercenaries to help the CIA do any job outside their jurisdiction. He refuses to reveal his name and chooses to be called by the name of the location of the meeting—a church.
Trench Mauser (Arnold Schwarzenegger)
credit: The Expendables
Arnold Schwarzenegger is not playing the Terminator or shooting guns. He’s Trench Mauser. Apparently, he’s a rival mercenary who Mr. Church called for a briefing on a mission. He lets Barney Ross and his team handle it and walks away.
James Munroe (Eric Roberts)
credit: The Expendables
Nine out of ten, Eric Roberts loves to play the bad guy in movies. He plays the film’s main antagonist. He’s a former CIA agent who has gone rogue and has his hands in the drug business. The Expendables are contracted to stop and take him out.
Paine (Steve Austin)
credit: The Expendables
Every villain needs an assistant to help them do their dirty work. Steve Austin’s character, Paine, is James Munroe’s personal assistant. If we take his name as a homonym, Paine loves to inflict pain on his victims. It was an easy role for Steve Austin, as his acting flowed naturally.
General Garza (David Zayas)
credit: The Expendables
David Zayas plays the General Garza character. General Garza is the president of Vilena but a figurehead controlled by James Munroe. He’s the movie’s second villain looking to destroy The Expendables.Jason Statham
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