An icon for generations of film fans, Carl Weathers might have left this mortal coil but his legacy as an action star won’t be forgotten…
Film and TV fans worldwide were saddened by the news of Carl Weathers’ death on February 1st, 2024. To many, their first experience of Weathers’ larger-than-life presence and charisma was seeing him as Sylvester Stallone’s nemesis in the Rocky franchise. Starring in the first four films, Weathers’ impact on the Rocky saga was such that even with the character dying at the hands of Russian behemoth Ivan Drago in his final outing, the Creed legacy lived on with a whole new franchise (led by Michael B. Johnson as Creed Jr).
Like myself, many fans also became aware of Weathers after his unforgettable appearance in Predator as part of one of the most rugged and memorable tough guy ensembles put to screen. I’m from a generation of action-loving fans who grew up watching films that I was too young to see, but feasting on the likes of Predator, Die Hard and The Terminator defined my younger days. Among an array of prolific action heroes, Weathers stood among them, yet as an action leading man he was sorely undervalued by studios.
Weathers might have been a steadier staple with a bit more box office luck in his first few solo projects, but he was also a star who seemed happy to diversify the genres he dipped his toes into and gained just as much popularity with comedic turns in the likes of Happy Gilmore and Arrested Development (“Baby, you got a stew going.”) and a deservedly high profile swansong with The Mandalorian.
That’s not to say Weathers hasn’t left plenty of action picks to enjoy and armed with an action-man physique he always looked the part. Here are some picks of Weathers’ action bunch:
Predator
Starting with Predator, because frankly it’s one of the most perfect examples of taking a ruthlessly simple concept and nailing it to perfection. Even then, John McTiernan had enough foresight to subvert and blend genre tropes too. The film begins as a meat-and-potatoes action film with a team of well defined mercs heading into the jungle on a rescue mission before turning into a tension-filled creature horror. It’s absolutely stuffed with memorable lines and moments which are quoted and referenced constantly to this day.
Among those is the infamous ‘Predator handshake’ which came early in the film as Dutch (Arnold Schwarzenegger) meets with old frenemy Dillon (Weathers). Normal folk greet with a hearty handshake, but when you’re Arnie and Carl Weathers with ridiculous biceps, you slap you’re hands together in a midair arm wrestle. Of course, being the Schwarzenegger vehicle and Ahnuld being as large as life as you could get back then, he wins.
Still, Dillon through his character’s arc from sly pencil pusher heading back into the frontline to some redemption for his subterfuge made the character interesting. His ultimate demise as well, in a selection of iconic death scenes was one of the best, getting his arm blown off by the near-unstoppable alien warrior before getting finished in a manner that no doubt inspired Mortal Kombat makers’ fatalities. Weathers was superb.
Action Jackson
With Weathers appearing in a number of popular movies in the 80s, opposite the primo action men of the time such as Charles Bronson (and Lee Marvin in Death Hunt), Arnold and Sly, it seemed inevitable that with such a burgeoning genre resurgence, he’d be pushed front and centre.
That came in Action Jackson which came the year after Predator. He reteamed with Craig R. Baxley who oversaw the explosive action sequence in Predator and was given the director’s seat proper in Action Jackson. An evolution of blaxploitation style with 80s action machismo and gloss, The film was modestly successful, particularly popular on video, but it seemed to put the kybosh on Weathers becoming as prolific in the genre as Arnold, Sly and the rival action men following in their wake.
Baxley (a stunt man turned director), as he showed in Predator’s ‘big’ action sequence and as he’d later show with films like Dark Angel and Stone Cold, had a knack for action. He was never given a hefty budget but scraped as much spectacle and bang for your buck as possible, with inventive action sequences and subtlety occasionally thrown out of the window. Action Jackson was no different. It lives up to its name too, packed with dialled-up and destructive action scenes and offering a sly wink at the genre tropes of the time, mixed with an affection for the blaxploitation era the decade prior. Sharon Stone co-stars and hadn’t quite blown big, then there’s Vanity and 80s villain specialists Craig T Nelson and Robert Davi.
The film’s legacy has certainly grown in time, with a growing cult following but it still feels underappreciated given how many great moments it has (“How do you like your ribs?”). Weathers is superb here, and yet his next action spectacular wouldn’t come for another four years.
Hurricane Smith
Speaking of that follow-up, Hurricane Smith came, went and sank without a trace but although it’s not nearly as wild and action-packed as Jackson, Weathers, at least according to the promotion of the time, hits like a hurricane. Given the somewhat lowly ratings, this one definitely isn’t without its merits. Weathers is an all-American hero in a film that feels a little like it was made 2-3 years too late to really catch the height of ’80s machismo. Weathers still looks the part and quips his way through speed boat chases, car chases and fist fights as he takes on Eurotrash villains led by Jurgen Prochnow.
Colin Budd cut his teeth as a TV director but doesn’t have the immediate action sensibilities that Baxley naturally brought with him. Still, there’s a lot to enjoy about Hurricane Smith and much like Schwarzenegger in something like Raw Deal, there’s a real sense that Weathers is way better than the project itself but he does his level best to elevate it.
Assault on Devils Island
The attempts to make Hulk Hogan an action star to rival Arnold et al, never quite worked and neither did the attempts to make him a family-friendly movie star with the likes of Mr Nanny (oh lord…Mr Nanny), The Secret Agent Club and Suburban Commando (sue me, I love it). In 1997 another attempt was made to cash in on Hogan’s beefy physique and legion of Hulkamaniacs by casting him as the head of an elite squad of mercenaries that counted skinemax icon Shannon Tweed among them. Making up the third of the trio was Carl Weathers, who by this point had laid his action career mostly to rest (sadly).
A failed (but enjoyable) TV series, called Street Justice was canned after two seasons but Weathers still had plenty to give as an action hero, even pushing 50. In Assault on Devil’s Island you have a made-for-cable special slightly hamstrung by the limitations and structure of a cable premiere (such as the fade-out triggers for ad breaks), and the violence isn’t cranked up as much as they could have. Still, it’s definitely not one aimed at Hogan’s younger fans given Tweed unleashes the twins (because much like not getting a Toblerone at Christmas, it would have felt wrong not receiving that gift as a cable viewer in 97).
Though it’s almost aggressively formulaic, there’s a lot of fun to be had with the oddball triumvirate of Tweed, Hogan and Weathers. Carl is far and away the most charismatic of the group and adds an action legitimacy to proceedings, whilst the cast is bolstered by Billy Drago, Martin Kove, Trevor Goddard and Billy Blanks. There’s enough explosive action to entertain here whilst Jon Cassar’s direction has enough competence to suggest a turn for the better and soon after he was a producer and director jumping between a number of top-tier TV shows (including 24).
Assault on Death Mountain
After a successful run for Devil’s Island, the Shadow Warriors returned with Assault on Death Mountain, and this time they have to stop the threat of chemical terrorism when an old nemesis of Hogan’s resurfaces. The gang are all back, although Weather’s seems less prominent this time around, no doubt due to scheduling or perhaps appearing through contractual obligation. Weathers never dials it in though, and he’s still built, buff and ready for action here.
It’s the lesser of the two outings, missing the antagonistic heft of Drago, Goddard and Blanks but there’s something likeable about our trio of merc heroes and it seems to work. There’s also a little more for Kove to do this time out. This one also effectively signalled the end of Weathers as a film action-hero but left no doubts that as an explosive force in the genre, Weathers deserved a fairer shake.
What’s your favourite Carl Weathers action film? Let us know on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
