The teaser trailer for Rambo: Last Blood depicts Sylvester Stallone's iconic antihero as he fights one final battle, as the war arrives to his doorstep. Somber and desolate, the first footage from Last Blood finds an aging, withdrawn John Rambo forced to confront his violent past. In that regard, the Vietnam War veteran is a kindred spirit to Marvel Comics' Wolverine, who's forever haunted by his own bloody history. However, the similarities go well beyond troubled backstories.
Rambo: Last Blood's first trailer bears an unmistakable resemblance to the one for 2017's Logan, star Hugh Jackman's farewell to the popular Marvel mutant. It's not only the obvious parallels in regard to a grizzled hero coming to terms with his own mortality, even as he must face down a relentless, existential threat. No, Last Blood's trailer eerily echoes Logan's, in some cases shot for shot.
A Lonely Place of Dying
First Blood's trailer opens with Rambo visiting a fresh grave, presumably near his home at his family's Arizona ranch. The final scene of 2008's Rambo depicted the character returning to see his father for the first time since shipping off to Vietnam. The grave indicates Rambo is alone again.
Logan's trailer opened with Wolverine drinking in a cemetery while observing a funeral. Death is very much at the forefront of the minds of Rambo and Logan, as the broken men have dealt out their fair share, and are unable to escape it.
Home Sweet Home
Rambo's ranch stands out from the vastness of the American Southwest, resembling Logan returning home to an abandoned oil refinery in the vaguely dystopian setting of the X-Men film. And just as the two figures carry on a relatively isolated life in the Southwest, both homes are soon interrupted by unexpected violence.
A Moment of Reflection
Both trailers portray a literal moment of self-reflection as Rambo and Logan stare at themselves in a mirror, contemplating their legacies and their futures.
With Logan's healing factor failing him, the introspective moment reveals the former superhero is now scarred inside and out. Rambo has similarly received his own battle wounds, but the Last Blood moment focuses on the character's psychological damage.
Trouble On the Way
No matter how much John Rambo and Logan try, no matter how far off the beaten track they go, violence will always find them, making any hope of a quiet life ultimately futile.
Both trailers feature an ominous caravan loaded with gun-toting adversaries heading straight for the hero's home: Rambo faces the Mexican cartels that have kidnapped a friend's daughter, while Logan was sought out by the Reavers based on his reputation with the X-Men.
Outnumbered and Outgunned
Never Rambo nor Logan is one to shy away from a fight, no matter the odds. Both trailers show the characters hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned and surrounded.
Rambo appears to be deep in Mexico, where he confronts a cartel led by Oscar Janeda before being beaten senseless by the enforcers. Logan confronts Donald Pierce, with the Reavers similarly training their weapon on the mutant.
One Last Ride
Both Last Blood and Logan were signaled long before their releases to be the final film in their franchises for the stars. Stallone debuted as John Rambo in 1982's First Blood, and reprised the role in three sequels, spanning more than two decades. For Jackman, Logan was the end of a run that began with 2000's X-Men; he portrayed Wolverine in nine total films.
In these shots, Rambo and Logan strike similarly iconic poses, as weathered, weary cowboys straight from a Hollywood Western, looming against the far horizon, ready to ride off into the sunset.
Directed by Adrian Grunberg (Get the Gringo) from a script written by Sylvester Stallone and Matt Cirulnick (Absentia), Rambo: Last Blood stars Stallone, Paz Vega, Sergio Peris-Mencheta and Yvette Monreal. The film opens Sept. 20.