By the early 80s, Sylvester Stallone was already a massive star thanks to the success of the 1976 classic, Rocky. After seemingly coming out of nowhere and finding himself nominated for two Oscars, he was now an A-list actor. So, by the time First Blood was released in 1982, Stallone’s fame only catapulted even further.
First Blood tells the story of John Rambo (Stallone), a vietnam war vet who visits the town of Hope to reconnect with his friend from the war. However, he soons learns that his friend has passed away. As he ventures into town to get some food, he is soon harrassed by an overzealous sheriff named Teasle (played by Brian Dennehy). Refusing to succumb to police brutality, Rambo flees the police station and heads into the mountains. What follows is a relentless game of cat and mouse as Rambo unleashes his deadly skills on the army of policeman hunting him. First Blood further accelerated the career of Sylvester Stallone and has gone on to be considered a true classic, spawning four sequels. However, the movie didn’t come without its problems. So, here’s the true story behind the iconic movie, First Blood.
First Blood Is Based on a Book
First Blood was the the debut novel from writer David Morrell and was released in 1972. After nearly 10 years of Hollywood interest in the book, it finally got adapted in 1982. Although the film stays true to the original material for the most part, there are still some differences. Both the book and the movie explore the character of Rambo in slightly different ways. While both versions highlight his skills as a veteran and his tense encounters with the police, the movie adaptation portrays him as less psychotic and more focused on evading capture while protecting himself. In contrast, the book presents Rambo as a man without conscience, willing to kill without remorse.
Another notable difference is the way the character is referred to. In the book, Rambo is only known by his last name, emphasizing his enigmatic nature and anonymity. However, in the movie, the decision was made to name him John Rambo, setting the trend of using common names like John in action movies of the 80s, such as John McClane from Die Hard and John Matrix from Commando.
Unveiling the Other Actors Who Turned Down First Blood
Sylvester Stallone has long been on record for claiming that he was the eleventh choice for the movie First Blood. Although he was a big name in Hollywood at the time, the movie’s producers initially sought out more established actors like James Caan, Burt Reynolds, Robert Redford, and Dustin Hoffman. Furthermore, when Warner Bros. first purchased the rights to the book, their first choices were Clint Eastwood and Robert De Niro. However, both actors passed on the role and Steve McQueen was next in line. Yet, the producers decided he was too old for the role and desired a younger star capable of dazzling action sequences.
The Story Behind the Filming Location of First Blood
First Blood is set in the fictional Washington town of Hope. It is depicted as a quiet, close-knit town. For that reason, Teasle’s treatment of Rambo is fueled by his desire to keep the town clean and free from “drifters”. Although the movie is set in the mountainous landscape of Washington, it was actually filmed in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Interestingly, many scenes were filmed in the quaint town of Hope, meaning production could utilise the town’s actual road sign in the scene where Rambo first enters Hope.
Why Sylvester Stallone Originally Hated First Blood
Although First Blood is widely considered to be one of the greatest action movies ever made, it was originally much more a drama. The original cut of the movie was three hours long and featured a lot more dialogue from Rambo. However, both Sylvester Stallone and his agent hated the first cut of the movie. In fact, Stallone even offered to buy the footage so that he could burn it. By this point, Stallone had developed a penchant for rewriting scripts thanks to his Oscar-nominated experience penning Rocky. As a result, half of the movie was cut and was turned from a 3-hour long drama spliced with action, to a tightly paced, 90-minute action movie.
A Major Star Departed First Blood After One Day of Filming
Although Rambo is a reclusive lone wolf, his ties to his military past connect him to one man who can reason with him. As the police struggle to capture Rambo, his former colonel and mentor, Trautman, shows up to try and track him down. Being the man who trained Rambo into the deadly killer that he is, Trautman proves as the only hope to put a stop to the madness.
In the movie revered to this day, Trautman was played by Richard Crenna. However, the role initially went to Hollywood heavyweight, Kirk Douglas. At the time of filming, Douglas was a serious force in cinema after starring in the classic movie, Spartacus. With such weight came a list of demands. Douglas requested that the script be re-written to depict Trautman as the movie’s hero and Rambo as the villain. He even requested that ending be changed where Trautman and Rambo have an epic shootout and Trautman kills Rambo. However, the script for First Blood had already gone through a staggering 26 rewrites, so Douglas’ demands were not met. As a result, he reportedly departed the project after one day of filming.
First Blood Nearly Ended Completely Differently
It’s no secret that First Blood nearly became a very different movie many times throughout its tumultuous production journey. However, if the movie had ended the way it was initially intended by director Ted Kotcheff, the Rambo series would have never become the successful franchise hit that it did. Kotcheff wanted Rambo to be shot and killed at the end of the movie but this didn’t sit well with Sylvester Stallone. The ending that exists today shows Rambo surrendering to Trautman after delivering a gut-wrenching monologue about the horrors of war. Stallone wrote this monologue himself and based it on countless interviews with real-life war veterans. And too this day, it stands out as one of his finest moments on film. So, it’s easy to see why he held the scene so close to his heart.
After filming this ending, Kotcheff requested that Stallone also film an alternate ending where Rambo is killed. However, Stallone disagreed as he didn’t like the message that this would send to real-life Vietnam war veterans. As a result, Kotcheff reportedly tried to sue Stallone and demanded that he return to film another scene. Months later, Stallone obliged but he had gained a significant amount of weight, knowing that this would affect the continuity of the movie. The scene was filmed and tested in front of an audience, who did not respond favourably. This meant that this alternate ending version of First Blood never saw the light of day, and Rambo lived to fight another day.
