Sylvester Stallone reveals he made a fortune from movie frachise after Al Pacino turned down role
PALM BEACH, FLORIDA: If you want Al Pacino to appear on your reality program, don't tell him you're filming one. The Oscar winner appears in the trailer of 'The Family Stallone,' with Sylvester Stallone's 'Rocky IV' co-star Dolph Lundgren.
Al has had one of the most recognizable careers in Hollywood, having performed key parts in films such as 'The Godfather,' 'Scarface,' 'Dog Day Afternoon,' and 'Scent of a Woman,' for which he received the Oscar for 'Best Actor' in 1993. The New York City native, born in 1940, most recently starred opposite Lady Gaga in 2021's 'House of Gucci' as Aldo Gucci, the head of the Gucci brand from 1953 to 1986. In May 2023, Al appeared on Sylvester's reality show 'The Family Stallone' to offer support to his friend. On the show, the two Hollywood giants talked passionately about family, particularly their children.
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Why did Al Pacino turn down 'First Blood'?
Sylvester played the renowned John Rambo in 'First Blood,' which launched the 'Rambo' franchise. His character swept the globe by storm, and the franchise became a great success. When one thinks about Sylvester, the words 'Rambo' or 'Rocky' come to mind. Iconic roles only become such if the performers don't let them get away. Frequently, big-name actors have passed up jobs because they believe they would not perform well, just to find out that the reverse is true. The part of the veteran hero was nearly not Sylvester's to perform, since other actors were theoretically in the queue.
Many actors vied for the role of John Rambo before Sylvester. Al was one of the performers that was in the running to portray the role. But he declined because his proposal that Rambo be more of a madman was denied. Clint Eastwood, John Travolta, Dustin Hoffman, Steve McQueen, Ryan O'Neal, James Garner, Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, and Paul Newman were all in the running for the part. They were all annoyed by how long the film was taking and didn't want to bother themselves with it. The script's continuous modifications were also not helping as the actors found it difficult to participate in the film since there was no long-term consistency in the screenplay. Given that the film was based on a novel, the debate surrounding the people featured was heightened.
'I threatened him'
How did Sly convince Al to meet him on camera? "I threatened him," he confessed to TV Insider. “I said, ‘Al, they pull you back in!’ No, I literally called him up in the afternoon and said, ‘Hey, why don’t we have a piece of pizza at Mulberry Street Pizza right in Beverly Hills?’ He goes, ‘Sure!’ Little did he expect,” revealed the 'Tulsa King' actor. Al is more humorous than one may imagine, according to Stallone.
“He’s really a nice guy — I know the Michael Corleone, he’s the Godfather, but he’s incredibly funny and talkative and animated, as you see [in The Family Stallone],” he revealed. “So, he’s sitting down there, and the cameras pop out from behind trash cans, behind cars. He goes, ‘What is this? What is this? I’m on a reality show? Oh my god.’ And I was expecting him to go, ‘I can’t do this. I’m outta here.’ No. He really enjoyed it! He came alive. He came up with some very funny things. He stayed there for, like, half an hour.” So, did Rambo “punk” Scarface? “Yes, I did,” he admitted proudly.
The first two episodes of 'The Family Stallone' will be available on Paramount+ on Wednesday, May 17, with more episodes following every Wednesday afterward.