The Expendables 4 has been slowly in the works for a little while now, with some of the franchise stars pushing Sylvester Stallone to continue working on a sequel (Jason Statham has been very vocal about a fourth Expendables film). But recent rumors have pitched the fourth Expendables film as something very different from what we've been expecting- a TV show, not a film.

According to Master Herald, there have been rumors that after Expendables 4 hits theaters, a TV spin-off would appear, featuring various TV action stars similar to the action movie heroes who populate the film (say, Chuck Norris and other TV heroes). But Master Herald also makes a very important point- according to several experts, the stars of the Expendables films may be too old to perform these kinds of stunts and action sequences on a regular basis (weekly, for a television show). Because of that, Master Herald assumes that a TV Expendables spin-off would not last very long. But can the same be said of the film itself?

Several new actors are up for roles in The Expendables 4, as is the case with every sequel in the franchise (the cast expands outward with action stars every time). This time, Pierce Brosnan, Hulk Hogan, Jackie Chan and Manny Pacquiao are some of the names rumored to come aboard for round four. As well, the franchise is rumored to start expanding out with more spin-offs besides a TV one. A horror film version of The Expendables has been rumored, along with an all-female spin-off titled The ExpendaBelles.

As well, The Expendables 4 will be rated R, after toning down the violence to PG-13 levels in The Expendables 3 left some fans upset. Stallone himself confirmed this, saying:

"Absolutely unequivocally yes. I believe it was a horrible miscalculation on everyone's part in trying to reach a wider audience, but in doing such, diminish the violence that the audience expects. I'm quite certain it won't happen again."

Expendables 4 does not have a release date as of yet, but the film may release sometime in 2017.