One of the most recognized action stars, Jackie Chan, is known for his tireless dedication to his craft. His solid martial arts chops and devotion to doing his own stunts in various films make him stand out among all the action movie stars out there.
Not only famous for his martial arts chops, Chan is also ruling out the hearts of many with his down-to-earth and humble demeanor. But the British-Hong Kong native refused to work together with another action icon, Sylvester Stallone.
Jackie Chan and Sylvester Stallone are the two biggest action movie stars. While it is common for actors of the same genre to collaborate together, both stars never worked with each other.
Jackie Chan Declined Three Sylvester Stallone Collaborations
Although it’s not like Jackie Chan and Sylvester Stallone didn’t get the opportunity to work together. They got a chance to be featured in three different projects, but it was Chan who refused to work with the Rocky Star.
Stallone tried to work with the Rush Hour actor, but due to concerns by Chan, a Stallone-Chan film never came to be. As per Chan’s autobiography, Never Grow Up, the first time Stallone wanted to work with him was in 1993’s Demolition Man.
Before casting Wesley Snipes as the villain, Stallone tried to get Chan for the part. But he opposed playing the character because of his heroic image in the movies.
The second offer he got was in the fourth Rambo film. In the film, Chan was asked to play the drug dealer, but he wasn’t drawn to the idea because of the same concerns. Years later, Stallone wanted Chan to be in Expendables 2 and 3, but he didn’t go with these films either.
Why Jackie Chan Rejected to Work in Expendables Franchise?
Jackie Chan was asked to appear in The Expendables franchise many times. Chan was one of the various action icons that Sylvester Stallone tried to recruit when he was casting for the Expendables movies.
Chan later spilled why he didn’t appear in the two sequels. The action legend said to Stallone (via Screen Rant), “Sly, why don’t we just do you and me?” because somewhere, he knew that being in an Expendables movie meant sharing the screen with other action icons.
He felt that casting alongside other stalwarts like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Statham, and Jean-Claude Van Damme would overshadow his presence. So, scheduling conflicts and relatively smaller parts made him refuse to sign the franchise.
