Sylvester Stallone would be a great villain forA Working Man 2- if he could only break one of his oldest screen rules. While he has never held a ceremony to this effect, Stallone has essentially anointed Jason Statham as his action successor. Stallone made Statham his main co-star inThe Expendablesmoviesand also penned the screenplay for Statham’s 2013 thrillerHomefront. Stallone also wrote the forthcomingA Working Manfor his old pal, which adapts the gritty thriller novelLevon’s Tradeby Chuck Dixon.
Levon’s Tradeis the first book in theLevon Cadeseries, which has twelve entries as of 2024.The trailer forA Working Manmakes it look like another hit for Statham, so the film carries some franchise potential.The second novelLevon’s Nightcould give Statham his very own take onDie Hard, where Cade is forced to fight a team of mercenaries during a snowstorm. What’s interesting aboutA Working Manis that Stallone didn’t take an onscreen role, despite the film featuring some plum characters, like Levon’s blind mentor Gunny (played by David Harbour).
A Working Man Cast & Character Guide: Who Stars In Jason Statham’s Action Movie
A Working Man features the likes of Jason Statham, Michael Peña, and David Harbour, among many other promising action actors.
Sylvester Stallone Should Play A Working Man 2’s Main Villain
Levon’s Night features a nasty antagonist part for Stallone
While Stallone has found TV success withTulsa King, he isn’t faring as well with movies. His most recent action filmsArmorandAlarumboth scored 0% on Rotten Tomatoes and largely bypassed theaters. The star could use a movie hit, and signing up for a potentialWorking Man 2could be just the ticket. Assuming a sequel would go in the same order as the books,Levon’s Nighthas a truly vicious bad guy role Stallone could nail.
The sequel novel involves Cade and his daughter living in peace in an isolated community in Maine - until the night a group of heavily armed thieves turn up looking for a hidden stash of millions. This group is a merciless bunch, often torturing a loved one in front of the people they want information from, feeling this will earn them more honest answers. Stallone would be a perfect fit for the steely head of this group, andhaving Sly face off against Statham would makeA Working Man 2feel like a true event.
Stallone Vs Statham Would Be A Great Reverse Of Their Expendables Relationship
A Working Man 2 could give Statham’s Levon a genuine threat
Fun as movies likeThe BeekeeperorOperation Fortuneare, they lacked memorable villains for Statham’s characters to battle. The same could be said ofLevon’s Trade, where most of the gangsters Cade fights don’t present a huge challenge; that said, the adaptationA Working Manmight have fixed that issue. Either way, casting Stallone as the chief villain fromLevon’s Nightsounds like an ideal hook for a sequel. The star himself could bring some extra depth to the somewhat thinly sketched role too.
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Pitting Statham against Stallone would also be the inverse of their chummyExpendablesfriendship.The chumminess between Stallone’s Barney and Statham’s Christmas gave that action saga its soul, with the two constantly exchanging macho banter while occasionally opening up about their feelings. One of the few effective elements ofThe Expendables 4involved Christmas mourning Barney after his supposed death, which loaned the sequel some badly needed depth.
A true villain is the kind of role Stallone has shied away from, but given how menacing he can be in his heroic roles, it would be intriguing to watch him channel that intensity into a bad guy…
That’s why it would be fun to flip that dynamic and make them mortal enemies inA Working Man 2.Stallone hasn’t played a true villain in a very long time, and the mercenary leader fromLevon’s Nightis about as irredeemable as an antagonist can get. This is the kind of role Stallone has shied away from, but given how menacing he can be in his heroic roles (likeRamboorCobra), it would be intriguing to watch him channel that intensity into a bad guy.
A Working Man 2 Could Break Stallone’s No Death Rule After 50 Years
Stallone believes audiences hate watching their heroes die
In the Netflix documentarySly, the star remembers a disagreement he had with director Norman Jewison while filmingF.I.S.T.This gritty 1978 thriller was one of Stallone’s follow-ups toRocky, where he disagreed with Jewison about his union leader character getting gunned down in the finale. Jewison overruled his star, so the film ends on a downer note.Ever sinceF.I.S.T., Stallone has refused to die onscreenand has essentially kept that vow since 1978.
Sylvester Stallone originally planned to turn theLevon Cadenovels into a TV series.
If he plays the bad guy inA Working Man 2, Stallone is going to have to break his no-death habit. If the sequel is true toLevon’s Night, there’s no way Cade would allow such a monster to escape or get arrested, so death would be the only option. If Stallone does decide to finally break his ironclad rule, it makes sense he would allow his action protégé to deliver the killing blow. Still, a sequel is a long way off being confirmed, so this team-up is currently a pipedream.
A Working Man
Cast
A Working Man follows Levon Cade, a former black ops soldier, as he navigates a quiet life working in construction. Upon the abduction of his boss’s daughter by human traffickers, Cade embarks on a mission to rescue her, uncovering a vast network of corruption in the process.
