Sylvester Stallone made the character John Rambo famous in the 1982 film First Blood, another actor had already appeared on screen under the “Rambo” name seven years earlier in a very different film.

1. The film and actor

The actor in question was Tomas Milian, a Cuban-born (later Italian-based) actor who starred as a character called “Rambo” in the 1975 Italian crime film Syndicate Sadists (Italian title Il giustiziere sfida la città). (Wikipedia)

In that film Milian’s character is named Rambo, an ex-cop / biker type who enters into a conflict with organised crime in a contemporary Italian city setting. (Wikipedia)

The key timeline fact: the film was released in 1975, which is seven years before the 1982 release of First Blood. (Wikipedia)

2. How this came about and its relationship to the “real” Rambo

Here are some of the interesting details:

• The original Rambo character was created by author David Morrell in his 1972 novel First Blood. (Wikipedia)

• Milian read the Morrell novel while flying from the U.S. to Rome, and was apparently so taken with the name/character that he tried to persuade Italian producers to adapt it.

• When that did not happen, he instead used the name “Rambo” for his film role in Syndicate Sadists. (Wikipedia)

• The film Syndicate Sadists does not adapt the Morrell novel in any strict sense — the plot is quite different (crime‐families in Milan, biker/ex‐cop hero, etc.), and the director Umberto Lenzi admitted his influences were other crime films. (Wikipedia)

• ScreenRant and other sources explicitly say Stallone was not the first actor to appear as “Rambo” onscreen: “Stallone wasn’t actually the first actor to play John Rambo…

• Cuban-Italian actor Tomas Milian first bringing the character to screens with 1975’s Syndicate Sadists (AKA Rambo’s Revenge).” (Screen Rant)

• To be clear: when Stallone played John Rambo in First Blood (1982), that was the official major Hollywood adaptation of Morrell’s novel, and that portrayal is the one that became iconic.

• But the Italian film stands as a curious “precedent” in name only.

3. Comparison & significance

Why this is interesting:

• The 1975 film predates the more famous First Blood by seven years.

• That means that in some sense Milian’s “Rambo” is the first onscreen character with that name, though not the same backstory or character details as the novel/film Rambo.

• Milian’s version is a motorcycle‐riding ex‐cop in Italy; whereas Stallone’s Rambo is a Vietnam veteran and the film is explicitly based on Morrell’s novel.

• This underscores how globally film markets sometimes appropriate names, characters or concepts in ways that diverge from the original.

• Milian wanted to star in a direct adaptation of the novel, but when that didn’t happen he used the name in a different story.

• For fans of the Rambo franchise, it’s a strange footnote: the name “Rambo” had already been used in screen form, but the version that most people know remains Stallone’s.

4. Context & legacy

• First Blood (1982), directed by Ted Kotcheff, introduced Stallone as John Rambo, and set off the major franchise (Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo III, etc.). (Collider)

• The Italian “poliziotteschi” genre (crime/gangster films of the 1970s in Italy) in which Milian’s film sits was quite distinct — it was more about vigilantism, crime syndicates, urban violence.

• Milian’s “Rambo” film is very much in that genre.

• The fact that Milian’s film essentially borrowed the name but not the full character/novel is what distinguishes it from the canonical Rambo as conceived by Morrell and popularised by Stallone.

• Some commentators view the 1975 film as a cult curiosity; it did not lead to a “Rambo franchise” in Italy, and its Rambo is not widely known outside enthusiast circles.

• For example: “For once the Italian didn’t steal an idea, they had Rambo first.” (IMDb)

5. Summary

In short: yes — before Sylvester Stallone’s iconic portrayal of John Rambo in 1982, there was indeed an actor who played a character named “Rambo” in a film released in 1975: Tomas Milian in Syndicate Sadists.

The connection is mostly nominal (same name) rather than direct adaptation of Morrell’s novel.

Nonetheless it’s a fascinating piece of cinema trivia for those exploring the Rambo legacy.