The MPAA makes it official: Expendables 3 is PG-13

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

This should not come as a surprise to anyone, as Sylvester Stallone has been pretty vocal about the PG-13 rating they were aiming for with THE EXPENDABLES 3. Now the MPAA has officially made it . . . official, and THE EXPENDABLES 3 will be rated PG-13 for:

Violence including intense sustained gun battles and fight scenes, and for language.

When word of a PG-13 Expendables hit (even back when EXPENDABLES 2 may have been PG-13), people were really up in arms. They still are! I understand where those people are coming from, I really do. When THE EXPENDABLES was first brought forth, it was supposed to emulate all the great action films of yesteryear. And you know what? Most of those films were a hard R, and better for it. I could list ’em, but you all know what they are. THE EXPENDABLES movies thus far have been okay at best. Stallone’s already commented on the obvious, but the sequel took things too far into the spectrum of ridiculous one-liners, and the first was an experimental project. That, to me, is the great appeal to the franchise, as they are figuring things out as they go. Fine-tuning, if you will. THE EXPENDABLES 3 has the biggest cast so far of popular action stars, and I’d rather they try something different with this one than follow the format of the previous two. If that means a PG-13 rating, so be it. After all, are there not great action films that are PG-13? This territory has been covered in-depth, but there are times when the R-rating does matter, and when a PG-13 is okay. I feel that if it’s planned beforehand, that’s just dandy. For those who disagree, perhaps if this movie fails, they’ll try going back to an R-rated format. Either way, I definitely want to see how this flick fares come August.

The now PG-13 rated EXPENDABLES 3 will hit theaters on August 15, 2014.