The Expendables 2 (2012)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A team of elite mercenaries must hunt down a dangerous arms dealer after a deadly mission leaves one of their own members dead.
The story
The Expendables are sent to Nepal to rescue a Chinese businessman who has been captured by Nepalese militia. The mercenary team includes leader Barney Ross, blade expert Lee Christmas, martial artist Yin Yang, weapons specialist Hale Caesar, demolitions expert Toll Road, the unstable Gunner Jensen, and sniper Billy "The Kid," the group's youngest and newest member. They rescue the businessman and the captured Trent Mauser, Ross's rival. Yang leaves the group to escort the businessman back to China. After returning to New Orleans, Billy tells Barney that he intends to retire at the end of the month and live with his girlfriend, Sophia. Later, Barney is forced to accept a mission from CIA operative Mr. Church to retrieve an item from a downed airplane in Albania.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
The Expendables are sent to Nepal to rescue a Chinese businessman and the captured Trent Mauser. After the mission, the team returns to New Orleans where Billy the Kid announces his retirement. Barney Ross then accepts a mission from CIA operative Mr. Church to retrieve a computer from a downed plane in Albania. During the retrieval, they are ambushed by the criminal group known as the Sangs, led by Jean Vilain. Vilain kills Billy by driving a knife through his heart. The team tracks the computer's signal to a mine in Bulgaria, where they find it contains information on 5 tons of weapons-grade plutonium. They discover the local women are trying to protect their children from Vilain's forced labor. After a series of battles, the team enters the mine, but Vilain escapes with the plutonium, causing the mine to collapse. With the help of allies Church, Trench, and Booker, the team pursues Vilain to an airport. In a final showdown, Barney Ross defeats and kills Vilain. In the aftermath, the team members part ways, and Billy's girlfriend, Sophia, finds his final letter and a sum of money.
- First release year
- 2012
- Runtime (minutes)
- 103
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Simon West
- Writers
- Richard Wenk · screenplay; Sylvester Stallone · screenplay; Ken Kaufman · story; David Agosto · story; Richard Wenk · story
- Cast and characters
- Sylvester Stallone · Barney Ross; Jason Statham · Lee Christmas; Jet Li · Yin Yang; Dolph Lundgren · Gunner Jensen; Chuck Norris · Booker; Randy Couture · Toll Road; Terry Crews · Hale Caesar; Liam Hemsworth · Billy the Kid; Yu Nan · Maggie; Jean-Claude Van Damme · Vilain; Bruce Willis · Church; Arnold Schwarzenegger · Trench
- Genres
- action; thriller
- Themes
- Revenge; Mercenary life; Brotherhood
- Tone and mood
- Action-packed; Humorous; Violent
- Setting
- Nepal, New Orleans, Albania, and Bulgaria.
- Premise and plot tags
- Action; Mercenaries; Nuclear threat; Sequel
- Franchise connections
- The Expendables
- Reception
- Critics generally considered the film an improvement over its predecessor due to its increased use of humor and action sequences, but its plot and dialogues received criticism.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 68% · scale: percentage · review count: 133; Metacritic · score: 51 · scale: 100 · review count: 28
- Awards and nominations
- BMI Film Music Awards · Film Music · 2013 · Win
- Production trivia
- The production faced controversy regarding environmental damage and the death of a stuntman in Bulgaria.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…