THE REAL ENDING REVEALED: Sylvester Stallone’s Original Ending for Rambo: It Was So Dark It Could Have Ruined the Entire Series
Sylvester Stallone would have never had one of his best franchises if he had not stopped the director from going with his original ending.
Actor Sylvester Stallone changed his fate when he wrote and starred in the sports drama Rocky. The Best Picture winner spawned a franchise that has included five more sequels and a spinoff trilogy on Adonis Creed. While the Rocky franchise may have put Stallone on the map, it was his role in the Rambo franchise that made him an action star.
He starred as the Vietnam War veteran John Rambo in Ted Kotcheff’s First Blood. Contrary to the high-adrenaline action extravaganza that was the sequels, the first film was a poignant exploration of Vietnam War veterans’ struggle to integrate back into society while also dealing with their trauma. This reportedly ended darkly for John Rambo in the film originally.
First Blood Director Revealed The Original Ending Which Would Have Killed The Rambo Franchise
Sylvester Stallone in First Blood | Credits: Orion Pictures
Based on David Morrell’s novel of the same name, First Blood saw a war veteran named Rambo take on the police department after returning from the Vietnam War. The theme of the film was the exploration of how veterans who fought in Vietnam were treated by Americans after they returned.
The film reportedly went through many hands before landing on Ted Kotcheff’s lap and Sylvester Stallone’s involvement boosted the production timeline. Stallone reportedly also requested to do some rewrites on the script after he read through it over a weekend and loved the story. Kotcheff reportedly allowed it after he proved himself with Rocky.
Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo in First Blood | Credits: Orion Pictures
While the Rambo franchise has five films, an animated series, and a prequel series in development, none of it would have materialized if Ted Kotcheff had gone with his original ending. In the dark ending originally conceived by Kotcheff, he mentioned that Rambo was going to die as it was the natural way to go for a war vet with PTSD. He said to EW,
That’s why I conceived of First Blood as Rambo’s s*icide mission. The film was basically conceived as Rambo’s tragedy, which mirrored the tragedy of so many of the veterans that I talked to. I met guys that actually later on killed themselves. His tragedy mirrored their tragedy, and how they came to this sad conclusion to kill themselves.
The scene reportedly saw Rambo in the police station after being apprehended with Colonel Sam Trautman threatening to kill him. However, when the Colonel hesitates to pull the trigger, the original ending sees Rambo reach out and pull it himself.
Sylvester Stallone Changed The Ending Of First Blood
A still from First Blood | Credits: Orion Pictures
In First Blood, not only does John Rambo experience the Vietnam War and return to a society not willing to accept him, but also faces a police department, the National Guard, and the state patrol pursuing and torturing him after he investigates a fellow soldier’s death. He undergoes various methods of torture throughout the film while also suffering from PTSD.
While director Ted Kotcheff intended the film to be Rambo’s s*icide mission and crafted the ending to be true to the bad experience of some Vietnam war vets, Sylvester Stallone reportedly requested that the ending be changed after filming it. Kotcheff told EW,
Sylvester got up and said, ‘Ted, can I talk to you for a second?’ He said, ‘You know, Ted, we put this character through so much. The police abuse him. He’s pursued endlessly. Dogs are sent after him. He jumps off cliffs. He runs through freezing water. He’s shot in the arm and he has to sew it up himself. All this, and now we’re gonna kill him?’
Kotcheff reportedly then filmed the ending that was kept in the film and despite the producers’ insistence to wrap for the day and stick to the original ending, test audience’s preference for the happier ending reportedly convinced them.
