When Arnold Schwarzenegger & Sylvester Stallone were Bitter Rivals!
The '80s - When Arnie & Sly Were Bitter Rivals
Plus, Let Us Know Your Favorite Action Star
The recent announcement that Sylvester Stallone may be involved in the launch of a TV series showcasing Rambo, one of his most iconic action star characters, once again proves that those ‘80s action heroes never die, they just keep checking in to anti-aging clinics.
Plus the Rambo news nudged the memory banks to recall the sheer enmity that Stallone had for his biggest rival of that ‘80s blood and guts battlefield, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
As regards their early careers Stallone got off to a flier with his groundbreaking “Rocky”in 1976, which he wrote and starred in and won the Oscar for best movie of the year. In 1979 came “Rocky II,” in which the bulky Stallone of the original “Rocky” had streamlined himself a little into a muscular fighting machine. In 1981 a buffed Arnold appeared in the lead role of “Conan the Barbarian,” and a pecs and biceps rivalry was born. Initially Sly was more successful and it appeared he had a head start, particularly as he spoke the better English: which is a bit like saying Miley Cyrus is shier than Rihanna.
Arnold stormed into the fray with “The Terminator”in 1984, then the likes of “Commando,” “Predator,” “Red Heat” et al., culminating in his biggest smash, “Terminator 2” in 1991. During this time, Sly countered with “Rocky IV,” and the “Rambo” and “Cobra”franchises.
Looking back, Arnold admits, “Oh yes. In the ‘80s, early ‘90s Stallone was like my action star rival, like the Hollywood version of Sergio Oliva. I looked at him as competition and because of that we had a rocky— no pun intended— relationship. Which I acknowledge was my doing. I always tried to outdo him on the physique side; or who had the most awesome weapons in a movie; how many people we killed in a movie; who killed the villain in the most outrageous or funny way; whose movie grossed the most. It was crazy, intense competition, an all-out war in a sense. But when Planet Hollywood (restaurant chain) was launched in 1991 we had to be— and wanted to be— in the same team. This was when we began to normalize our relationship and since then we’ve become good friends.”
Arnold being elected Governor of California in 2003 excluded them being screen buddies for a while, but after leaving office in 2011 it was green light time for these action stars of the ‘80s to create and combat mayhem. This generated the duo’s collaboration on “The Expendables” (2010) and “The Expendables 2” (2012). However, in those two previous screen outings, Arnie and Sly were part of an ensemble cast, in “Escape Plan”, released in 2013, they are the two main leads having to carry the film. This latest partnership is pretty remarkable when one reflects that at the start of their action movie careers (late ‘70s, early ‘80s), they were if not bitter rivals, about as welcome in each other’s company as a fart in a space suit.
With the Oscars slated to take place on February 28th and with Stallone being up for a Best Supporting Actor award for his part in the move “Creed”, all Tinseltown eyes are on the guy who made “Yo! Adrian!” a catch phrase for the ages. Given their track record Arnold will no doubt fight back with another bit of action star upmanship.
Meanwhile, let us know which action star from our combative couple’s resumes are your favorite.
