Sylvester Stallone may not be steering some of the big upcoming projects tied to his legacy, but that doesn’t mean the Academy Award–nominated actor doesn’t have thoughts on them—or stories of his own to tell. In a new conversation on The Playlist’s Bingeworthy podcast about Stallone’s Paramount+ series “Tulsa King”—just renewed for season 4—the actor discussed a memoir he’s writing, his reaction to Peter Farrelly’s upcoming “Rocky” making-of drama, “I Play Rocky,” and revealed that he once pitched an AI-driven prequel for “Rambo” before the version currently in development took off.
Asked about Farrelly’s film, Stallone admitted he was blindsided. “I was shocked to read [about] it,” he said, “I have zero to do with it.” However, the actor/director added that his memoir, “The Steps,” which recounts his arrival in New York in 1969 and the long climb to the Oscars, might eventually allow him to provide some perspective: “Since I lived it, I thought I might be able to participate and give them some insight.”
That might be wishful thinking, given that a script has already been written, Anthony Ippolito is already set to star, and Stallone wasn’t consulted. But the bigger reveal came when the conversation turned to the “Rambo” franchise. A movie about the origin of “John Rambo” is already in the works, set during the Vietnam War with Noah Centineo attached and Jalmari Helander (“Sisu,” “Rare Exports”) directing.
But Stallone disclosed that a few years ago, he had pitched doing the film himself, only as a full-on AI experiment. “Everyone thought I was crazy,” he recalled, explaining that the technology could have convincingly de-aged him back to his Vietnam-era youth. “AI is sophisticated enough to go through Saigon to see him at 18 years old and basically use the same image. So it isn’t as big a stretch.”
Stallone stressed that taking over the role is a near-impossible task for any actor. “It’s very, very hard. He may do a stellar job, but you’re overcoming this because I went through it with ‘Get Carter’. Everyone loves the original, and then you’re always fighting that prejudice,” he said, likening the challenge to being ‘the son of Tarzan’ or ‘The son of King Kong.’”
For now, Stallone is letting others tell the origin stories of “Rocky” and “Rambo,” while he continues to focus on his own. With “Tulsa King” charging into its fourth season on Paramount+ and “The Steps” on the horizon, Stallone is still finding ways to frame his myth—whether or not Hollywood ever catches up to his AI ambitions.
More from this conversation soon. — Additional reporting by Mike DeAngelo.
Rodrigo Perez is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Playlist, which he launched in 2007. He has worked in entertainment journalism since 2000, including at MTV, and has written for SPIN, IndieWire, Pitchfork, Complex, Magnet, and various music, film, and entertainment publications over the past two decades.
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