Noah Centineo Starring as Young Rambo Is So Outrageous It Just Might Work

The reboot, prequel, and sequel era isn’t letting up, and even Rambo has fallen victim to it.

When it comes to iconic films and roles, and revisiting the type of legendary IP that will most assuredly have people grabbing their pitchforks and angrily tapping away at their keyboards or screens, Rambo is high up there.

Not only is that an iconic franchise that should not be touched, but it’s something that conjures up the thought: “Why mess with perfection?”

Nevertheless, it’s 2025, and action fans of all ages familiar with Rambo and Sylvester Stallone‘s performance in that role must make peace with the fact that a Rambo prequel has been greenlit 43 years after the franchise made its debut.

We haven’t had a sequel to this movie since 2019, which put some finality to the chapter of this iconic action hero that shaped so much of Stallone’s career.

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But alas, apparently, there’s still a story worth telling regarding John Rambo, and it focuses on his origin story.

We don’t know anything else about the plot of this film, according to Deadline, but we do know that it’ll take place during the Vietnam War. So we’ll get an idea of what Rambo was like before he became a veteran who waged war in the mountains against a nefarious sheriff.

And we also know that The Recruit’s Noah Centineo is slated to play John Rambo.

Yes, that Noah Centineo.

It’s difficult enough to present a prequel to such an iconic franchise when people are notoriously resistant to that sort of thing. Most fans can begrudgingly or excitedly come around to a sequel.

But reboots and prequels? Not so much.

Having a Rambo film come out that doesn’t star Sylvester Stallone is a huge risk, and it subjects whoever must step into his shoes to such intense scrutiny and potential criticism.

An announcement like this feels like throwing Centineo into the lion’s den. People get very passionate about their favorite franchises, especially something as iconic as Rambo.

And Centineo is one of those actors who unfairly garners a lot of scrutiny, dissection, and dismissal.

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But here’s the thing: for all the scrutiny and skepticism, Centineo has already proven that he can play roles with charm and grit.

He starred in The Fosters for some time, picking up the baton after Jake T. Austin exited the series. And he reprised his role as Jesus Adams-Foster on Good Trouble as well.

But what many will consider his breakout role was that of Peter Kavinsky in Netflix’s To All the Boys I Loved Before.

He starred in a plethora of romcoms from that point forward, right up until he landed the lead role in Netflix’s tragically canceled The Recruit.

On paper, these are the types of things that would have people unfamiliar with him questioning whether or not he was capable of stepping into the massive shoes of Stallone to play a character like Rambo.

There’s a frustrating denigration of young adult shows and romantic comedies, and much of Centineo’s discography has a healthy dose of both.

It often feels like audiences associate those particular credits with someone who is “less than” as an actor and incapable of taking on more serious roles or being versatile.

However, whether people tip their hat to the man or continue to mock him because of his acting origins, Centineo is quite versatile.

He executed some complex and heavy storylines during his days on The Fosters, giving us a glimpse into the range he possessed if he had dared to branch out, hone his craft, and choose the right projects.

And anyone who ever tuned into The Recruit and enjoyed the series can attest to how well Centineo embodied the role.

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Back then, that was unexpected of him, too. We’ve seen Centineo play an action hero well, with that boyish charm, a hint of brokenness that lies just beneath the surface of a deceptively complicated and compelling character like Owen Hendricks.

And this won’t even be Centineo’s first time playing a war hero with the complications that come with holding that title. He was part of the star-studded “Who’s Who of Familiar Young Talents” of the gritty, provocative, and layered Warfare.

The latter is a film that is lauded for its realistic, complex, and sobering depiction of a real-life platoon during a harrowing operation amid the Iraqi War, and captures the sobering question of “what are we doing here?”

The film, by most, is as remarkable as it is triggering and discomforting, with its cast garnering praise for their respective performances.

So, when you factor in things like that, the notion that Centineo could step into his own as an action hero doesn’t seem so outlandish after all.

Beyond the dirt, mud, and badassery, Rambo was more than the story of a veteran who relied on brute force and quick wit. It was also a story of someone with a vulnerability that stemmed from his experiences and the scars left behind.

One can only imagine that a young John Rambo during his Vietnam days possessed even more vulnerability and a gentler quality before war itself hardened him.

And if that’s the angle that this prequel is taking, then it’s the aspect of the character someone like Centineo can tap into with relative ease.

With the right script and direction, Noah Centineo could pull the role off and surprise people. He’s playing the character at a critical point in his life, and Centineo does well capturing the brokenness behind a masked exterior.

He’s also someone who has proven himself capable of pulling off action sequences.

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Do we need this Rambo prequel? No. Not hardly.

But it’s coming regardless of our sentiments on that. But Noah Centineo starring as a young John Rambo?

Dare I say that casting choice is so outrageous that it just may work?

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