50 Cent to replace Forest Whittaker in Stallone's The Expendables

Filming for The Expendables had to be pushed back a month which meant Forest Whitaker had to bow out to due to scheduling conflicts. Sylvester Stallone sent these letters over to AICN. The first one mentions the various character names and points out that Curtis Jackson (50 Cent) has replaced Forest Whitaker in the film.

Needless to say this caused a whole heap of WTF so Stallone sent the second letter explaining the decision.

Dear Harry,

Below is a letter that I sent to the Stallone Zone that I had also wanted to
send to you because I have the same loyalty to your site as well. Anyway, it
might temper preconceived opinions.

Thank you and best,
Sly

P.S. Also, for clarification:
Hale Caesar is Curtis Jackson
Toll Road (new character) is Randy Couture
Monroe is Eric Roberts
Tool (an ex-Expendable) is Mickey Rourke
Bao is Jet Li
Lee Christmas is Jason Statham
Lacy is Charisma Carpenter
Sandra is Giselle Itie (famous Brazilian actress)
And
Barney 'the schizo' Ross is Yours Truly.

P.S.S. By the way, there's enough testosterone and ego in this film to float
a large continent covered in elephants, but I'm enjoying it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Craig,

I appreciate the incredible amount of work you've done on my behalf. Please
tell the loyal followers to be positive not negative in their feedback. I am
not self-destructive. The anger of the casting of 50 Cent is understandable,
but not fair. A player is only as good as his coach. If a man can
communicate in one medium, he can communicate in another if his strengths
are brought out and he has the support of well-wishers. So, trust me, the
change of Forest Whitaker to 50 Cent AKA Curtis Jackson is a good one. No
one thought Dolph Lundgren was a good choice for ROCKY or Mr. T. Carl
Weathers was an afterthought when Ken Naughton fell out. The same with Talia
Shire and Richard Crenna, who was known as a comedic actor, not a serious
one.

Nobody wanted Eric Roberts over Ben Kingsley, but I believe it's a vastly
improved casting. The point is, you either believe in me and the project,
setting your personal feelings aside, or you take a darker approach, which
really serves no purpose since your insight and suggestions and overall
enthusiasm are a great thrill for me to behold everyday I sign on.

Signing off -

Your friend,
Sly

Oh well, he does stand by his decision. Pity Whitaker can't be in it. I've never seen 50 Cent in one of his acting roles so I'm not really in a position to comment. Do you think he is a good choice for the film or has Stallone dropped the ball on this one?

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