The Expendables is an American ensemble action thriller franchise spanning a film series, written by Sylvester Stallone and based on characters created by David Callaham, and additional media. The films star an ensemble cast, most notably Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jason Statham. The film series itself was created to pay homage to the blockbuster action films of the 1980s and 1990s, and also pays tribute to the action stars of those decades, as well as more recent stars in action. The series consists of three films: The Expendables (2010), The Expendables 2 (2012) and The Expendables 3 (2014), with a fourth film scheduled to be released in the future. The series has received mixed critical reception, in regard to its plots and dialogue between the characters; however, many critics praised the use of humor and action scenes. The films have been box office successes.