Sylvester Stallone Hated His $125M Movie So Much He Wanted to Destroy the Evidence After it Made Him Vomit
Sylvester Stallone has become the epitome of super-stardom. His career spans more than three decades. The actor has served as the public face of two of the most well-known brands, Rocky and Rambo. He rose to fame with his spectacular hit Rocky in 1976. He was critically acclaimed for playing the role of Rocky Balboa in the sports action drama, which was written by the actor and directed by John G. Avildsen.
After the success of Rocky, the 77-year-old co-wrote First Blood and started a long career as an action star. The film, released in 1982, was a huge success, both commercially and critically. It led to four sequels and an animated series. The First Blood series played a pivotal role in Sylvester Stallone’s career. Despite that, the actor hated it when he first saw the finished product.
Sylvester Stallone thought First Blood would be a career kill
Sylvester Stallone is well-recognized for his popular action blockbusters, developing and portraying the legendary roles of John Rambo and Rocky Balboa. The actor began a long career as an action star thanks to the success of the film he co-wrote, First Blood.
The film was released in 1982 and was a massive success at the box office. It launched a whole series, followed by four additional movies and an animated series. Despite John Rambo playing a pivotal role in the 77-year-old’s career, he hated First Blood when he first saw the finished product.
The filmmaker, during an interview with Howard Stern, reflected on the creation of First Blood. The actor confessed he thought the film would be a career kill for him. He said,
“I looked at this, I’m going, ‘This is a career killer. This film, when we did it, it was so bad—at least I thought, and even my manager—we both went out, I think we both retched together in the alley.”
The Rocky star further revealed he hated the movie so much that he tried to buy back the rights to the film. The actor was unsatisfied with his dialogue in First Blood and demanded to cut them all out.
Even though Sylvester Stallone disliked the initial version of First Blood, he recognized its promise. He proposed major creative alterations to the movie to make it more appealing.
More details about Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo franchise
The long-running Rambo film series centers on the title character, John Rambo, a Vietnam War veteran and former Green Beret who contends with both internal and external war. Sylvester Stallone played a significant role in the franchise’s success and accuracy, not just as the lead actor, but also as a co-writer.
Rambo drew a lot of attention to the pain that the majority of veterans feel, paying particular focus to the political aspects of combat. The Rambo franchise kicked off in 1982, with First Blood, being the kick-ass introduction to the now-beloved character. The first film went on to become a huge commercial success, grossing over $125 million.
The movie received a lot of praise, especially for highlighting how citizens handled veterans after they returned from the Vietnam War and their experiences with PTSD.
After the success of the first film, Stallone went ahead and released Rambo: First Blood Part II in 1985 and Rambo III in 1988. The fourth film was released 20 years later, named Rambo. The final film in the Rambo franchise is Rambo: Last Blood, which was released in 2019.
First Blood is available to rent on Apple TV.
Source: The Howard Stern Show
