Despite appearing in 3 movies together, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Arnold Schwarzenegger have never shared a scene; an upcoming film could change that.

Despite appearing in three movies together over the years, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Arnold Schwarzenegger have never actually shared a scene. During the ’80s and ’90s, Arnie was one of the biggest movie stars in the world, thanks to the likes of The Terminator movies or Twins.

While Van Damme never reached those levels of bankability, throughout much of the ’90s films such as Universal Soldier and Timecop – where Van Damme wanted a direct sequel – made him a major star. Both Van Damme and Arnie belonged to a famous group of muscle-bound action stars – with other members including Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren – who exemplified a certain era.

The 2000s saw comic book movies and CGI-driven blockbusters gradually supplant their kind of films with mainstream viewers, however. Despite being former rivals, Arnie and Stallone have since become good friends, and have co-starred in many movies.

Van Damme and Arnie worked on Predator, Last Action Hero and The Expendables 2 together – but have never appeared in the same shot. In the case of Predator, Van Damme played the original version of the titular alien before being fired, had a brief cameo as himself in Last Action Hero’s cast, while in Expendables 2 he spent most of his screentime running away from the team.

Predator was supposed to be Van Damme’s first major break, though it didn’t turn out that way. Accounts vary as to exactly why he was fired; some claim he was fired because he kept passing out from the heat in the jungle, while others state he was simply a victim of the original costume being terrible. Reportedly, no footage of Van Damme was used in the final version, which also would have seen him battle Schwarzenegger onscreen during the finale.

The two later became friends offscreen while Van Damme once dubbed Arnie his “idol,” which is likely why he agreed to his meta Last Action Hero cameo. It doesn’t appear there was ever a project they were set to work on together though. While former bodybuilder Arnold and JCVD take part in the same final battle sequence in Expendables 2, the latter ends up battling Stallone’s Barney Ross instead.

Van Damme is set to close out his action movie career with the forthcoming What’s My Name? where he’ll play a fictional version of himself. The story will see him awaken from a coma, and he will battle famous foes from his past work. While he obviously never fought with Schwarzenegger onscreen, What’s My Name? could serve as the last chance they have to actually share a scene. Considering the film is designed as Jean-Claude Van Damme’s final statement on his career and legacy, it’s only fitting his “idol” would make an appearance too. There’s no word on who will actually cameo in What’s My Name? yet, but a surprise Arnold Schwarzenegger cameo would certainly help it build some hype.