Sylvester Stallone has opened up about his long-running rivalry with Arnold Schwarzenegger. The two action stars once struggled to share the same space in Hollywood. However, their relationship eventually took a different turn. Stallone recently explained what helped them put their differences behind them.
Sylvester Stallone opens up about his 20-year feud with Arnold Schwarzenegger
Stallone and Schwarzenegger dominated action films throughout the 1980s. Both actors were extremely successful, but they also had a great rivalry going. Stallone recalled how serious things became during an appearance on the Rest Is Entertainment podcast. He said, “We couldn’t get on the same stage together to make a presentation or a speech.”
The Rocky star explained that their feud lasted for nearly two decades. He said the tension did not end until about 20 years later. According to Stallone, Schwarzenegger’s decision to leave Hollywood and enter politics helped change things. Schwarzenegger became California’s governor in 2003, creating some distance between their movie careers.
Stallone recalled the moment he decided to stop treating Schwarzenegger as a competitor. “I said, enough of this. We’re not in competition,” he said on the podcast. He also acknowledged that Schwarzenegger had stopped making movies during his time in politics. Stallone added, “Thank you very much for waking me up, lighting a fire under me.”
The actor also revealed that Schwarzenegger shared the same feelings about their rivalry. As Schwarzenegger’s time as governor approached its end, he returned to films with a cameo in The Expendables in 2010. The appearance brought the former rivals together on screen for the first time in the franchise. They went on to work together on Expendables 2 (2012), Escape Plan (2013), and Expendables 3 (2014).
