Stallone and Schwarzenegger “abhorred” each other
‘Sly’ reveals the depth of the feud between the two huge Hollywood stars
Sylvester Stallone ( Sylvester Stallone) has made a revelation about the extent of the rivalry he maintained for decades with his “rival” at the box office, Arnold Schwarzenegger (Arnold Schwarzenegger).
The reason for the rivalry between the two, as Stallone recently revealed to Forbes, was his competition at the box office as both of them starred in the action films of the ’80s and ’90s, going so far as to say that the two had a deep dislike for each other:
“We really disliked each other beyond belief. We were… this might sound a little vain, but I think we were pioneers in a certain genre at the time and it hasn’t been done since. So competition, because it’s in its nature , he’s very competitive and so am I… and I thought that really helped, but off screen we were still competitive and that wasn’t healthy at all, but we became really good friends.”
Indeed, in 2010 they co-starred together in The Expendables, with Schwarzenegger returning to the role for both The Expendables 2 and The Expendables 3 , despite initially being reluctant to return. He did not, as he said at the time, want to play Expendables without “Sly” as it was rumored at the time that he would no longer be in control of the franchise.
Speaking on a recent episode of “The Jonathan Ross Show,” Stallone said of the duo’s rivalry:
“We couldn’t stand to be in the same galaxy together for even a moment. We really, really hated each other.”
Stallone dominated the action genre in the 1980s with the Rambo movies and movies like “Cobra” and ” Tango & Cash .” Schwarzenegger began the 1980s with two of his most iconic action roles in Conan the Barbarian (1982) and The Terminator (1984), the latter of which certainly rivaled his Stallone to let loose. Schwarzenegger’s action success continued with “Commando” (1985) and ” Predator ” (1987).
Schwarzenegger left the franchise after Expendables 3 because he felt his role was underplayed. He characteristically stated at the time to Vanity Fair: ” You know, I think the first and second movies were amazing… But, in the third, I thought my role wasn’t well written… I didn’t think I had any value in the movie. By the way, I love the franchise. I think it’s a spectacular franchise. I think Sly has good ideas about what he wants to do with it, and I think if they write a really good script (in which my role will be very well structured ), I would. If not, then I won’t . “
Stallone and Schwarzenegger reunited on the big screen in 2013’s Escape Plan, which grossed $137 million worldwide. The film continued for two more sequels with Stallone still in the lead role.
