In a new interview, the actor discussed the physical toll of his movie roles and clashes with his father while filming Rocky.
Sylvester Stallone used steroids and developed bulimia while pushing his physique to extreme limits for the Rocky movies, the actor said in an interview published Saturday by The New York Times.
Stallone spoke with the newspaper to promote his new memoir, The Steps. Outlets reported conflicting release dates for the book: The Hollywood Reporter stated it arrives Sept. 29, while Deadline reported an Oct. 23 release.
Stallone said his physique served as personal armor as he shaped his appearances in the Rocky and Rambo franchises, aiming for a feral, athletic build rather than a large frame like Arnold Schwarzenegger. By the time he filmed Rocky III, that focus became an obsession. Stallone said his body fat dropped to 2.6 percent and he struggled to keep food down because he was fixated on maintaining his condition. He also confirmed taking steroids on a schedule of “six weeks on, six weeks off,” saying nobody achieves that build naturally without drugs.
Injuries and changing roles
The physical strain left long-term damage on his body. Stallone said he has undergone nine back operations, two shoulder operations and three neck fusions. He didn’t feel relief from Hollywood physical expectations until he gained weight and portrayed a partially deaf character in the 1997 movie Cop Land. Looking back, the three-time Oscar nominee said he wishes he hadn’t done his own stunts.
Clashes on the Rocky set
Stallone also recalled a hostile dynamic with his father, Frank Stallone Sr., whom he cast as the bell ringer for the climactic match in the original 1976 film Rocky. Stallone wanted his father’s approval, but the shoot went wrong when his father failed to ring the bell during a choreographed fight sequence with co-star Carl Weathers. The mistake disrupted the timing and triggered an altercation on set that Stallone described as “really nasty.”
Stallone described his father as cold and violent when they lived together, recalling sudden outbursts and physical strikes. The two didn’t reconcile until his father died in 2011.
The story behind the production of the original boxing film will return to the screen in the biopic I Play Rocky, which hits theaters Nov. 6 and stars Anthony Ippolito as a young Stallone.
