MOVIE NEWS

Sylvester Stallone is assembling a powerful line-up for his next action blockbuster. Maybe not the best acting-wise, but certainly physically intimidating.

Following his recent work in front and behind the camera on Rocky Balboa and Rambo, Stallone will star in and direct The Expendables.



Stallone has also written the screenplay. Apparently the film is about a team of mercenaries that head to South America to overthrow a dictator. Pretty standard stuff.

Not much more is known about the story and whether the group will come across an evil alien 'predator'.

But, the cast is certainly making itself known and it looks like being one that will rival, if not better, the special ops team from the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi actioner Predator.

That one of course was headed by Arnie, and backed by Carl Weathers, Jesse Ventura, Bill Duke and that big American Indian guy.

The Expendables is so far being made up of an interesting bunch that includes Sly and his old sparring partner Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Jason Statham and now Ultimate Fighting champion Randy Couture, who's probably the baddest of the lot.



Apparently a very excited Stallone called popular movie website AICN.com this week with the news that Couture had been signed.

"Sly's hoping he'll be able to give Couture an excellent boost towards big screen action stardom," the website said.

It also made mention of the fact Li is to fight Lundgren at one stage, so not quite sure if they're on the same team on not

The movie is also to star Forest Whittaker, so that should lift the standard of the acting a little. One might assume the Academy Award winner will play the dictator at the centre of the story.

He doesn't look quite fit enough to be on Sly's assembled outfit, or taken enough steroids. I didn't mean you Randy.