The Rambo franchise is coming back with some new blood! Unfortunately, it looks like the old blood is getting left behind this time around. Nu Image and Millennium Films are reportedly working on a fifth entry in the Rambo series, titled Rambo: New Blood. The movie may be paying a bit of homage to First Blood in name, but star Sylvester Stallone won't be back this time around.

The Hollywood Reporter broke the news and confirmed that the studio is now treating Rambo as more of a "James Bond" type franchise. That seems to imply they will occasionally revamp the series with a new actor as long as it is bringing in money at the box office. Rambo: New Blood will be the first attempt at this. No specific plot details for the movie were revealed in this initial report.

Brooks McLaren has been tapped to write Rambo: New Blood for the studio for director Ariel Vromen. The director's past credits include The Iceman and Criminal, which flopped earlier this year at the box office despite a lot of star power. The story also didn't mention who the studio had in mind to replace Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo, nor did it say if it would be a straight up reboot or somehow be a continuation.

Earlier this year, we reported that Sylvester Stallone was going to be producing a Rambo TV series for Fox with the same name as this new movie. The series was said to focus on John Rambo's son, who would be the "New Blood" bit of the Rambo: New Blood title. It seems likely that the TV series has been scrapped since this new movie is happening, but that has yet to be confirmed. Prior to his involvement with the series, Stallone discussed plans for a fifth and final Rambo movie called Rambo: Last Blood, but that isn't happening anymore either.

Rambo was the lead character in the 1972 novel by David Morrell titled First Blood, which was adapted in 1982 into a very successful movie by the same name. The franchise continued with three more sequels including Rambo: First Blood Part II in 1985, Rambo III in 1988 and Rambo in 2008, which Sylvester Stallone directed himself. It will probably be very hard for fans to accept a new Rambo movie that won't feature Stallone in it, but if they at least leave some sort of connective tissue, it could help to ease the transition. Either way, Rambo: New Blood is happening.