Movie Deaths That Happened Because The Actor Died In Real Life

Richard Crenna has had a long and varied career, from sitcom star in "The Real McCoys" to war epics ("The Sand Pebbles") to crime thrillers in both Hollywood ("Wait Until Dark") and France ("Un Flic"). But one of his most iconic roles has been opposite Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo's mentor, Colonel Sam Trautman. 

He first appeared in "First Blood" to help a small-town police department deal with the super soldier's rampage. When Rambo went to jail for his actions, Trautman came to visit him in "Rambo: First Blood Part II" to offer him a chance to return to the service and rescue POWs in Vietnam. Rambo then saved Trautman from Soviet invaders in Afghanistan during "Rambo III," but the officer was nowhere to be found when the series reappeared after decades of dormancy in 2008's "Rambo."

The movie never slows down long enough to explain Trautman's absence. But since Crenna died five years earlier, the subtext is obvious. Esquire reports that Stallone himself has confirmed the reason, with the magazine saying, "The character died with Crenna in 2003." The actor stuck by his guns when his collaborators suggested recasting the role with James Brolin. As far as he's concerned, Crenna is Trautman, and one can't be alive now that the other's dead.