Sylvester Stallone Was Paid to Walk Away From $225M Rocky (1976)?!

Name: Sylvester Stallone Was Paid to Walk Away From $225M Rocky (1976)?!
Uploaded: 2024-07-03T00:00:28+00:00
Duration: 50 s
Channel: Sam Parr
Description: In this narrated excerpt, Sam Parr recounts Sylvester Stallone’s 1970s interviews where studio executives offered him large sums—initially about $100,000…

3 Jul 2024 · 1 min

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In this narrated excerpt, Sam Parr recounts Sylvester Stallone’s 1970s interviews where studio executives offered him large sums—initially about $100,000 and later $265,000—to relinquish the role of Rocky and let another actor, such as Burt Reynolds, take it. Stallone, who at the time had only $106 in the bank and no personal experience with wealth, rejected the offers, stating that money never mattered to him. He emphasized that his motivation was the creative opportunity to embody Rocky, fearing that living a life without artistic fulfillment would be a lie. Stallone’s remarks highlight his belief that true value lies in creative expression rather than financial gain, illustrating a mindset where lack of a wealth frame of reference makes it easier to say no to money.

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I watched Rocky last night and I watched all of his old interviews from the 1970s. He's being interviewed by this guy. They offered you money for this, like a lot of money for this. How much they offer you? He goes, well, first they offered me about $100,000. But like, you go away. We will go get Burt Reynolds to be Rocky. Like, we don't need you to be Rocky. We like the script. And he's like, no, I only want to give you this script if I'm going to be Rocky. Final offer was $265,000, but you're not Rocky. How did you say no when you had $106 in the bank? He goes, it's not that hard to say no to money when you've never had money. You don't even know what money is. If you've never ridden in a Rolls-Royce, you don't mind bumping around in a Volkswagen. It's all you know. He goes, I didn't have a frame of reference for that. But you know what? The money never mattered. He goes, I would have done this whole thing for a donut and a tuna fish sandwich. The money meant nothing. It was always about the opportunity. I think of myself as a creative person. I didn't want to wake up and be 50 years old and realize that I'm this creative person who's never done anything creative. That would be terrible. I'd be living a lie. It would kill me.