Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky franchise has evolved into a cultural phenomenon since its inception in 1976. Audiences were not only interested in Rocky Balboa’s journey but also in the exceptional characters that graced the franchise. One such character who left an impact was Ivan Drago, a Soviet boxer who fights against Stallone in Rocky IV, played by Dolph Lundgren.
Rocky IV gave Dolph Lundgren, a Swedish actor, his breakthrough in Hollywood. Since then Lundgren has an impressive portfolio of over 80 films and he collaborated again with the Rambo actor for The Expendables. However, their relationship hasn’t always been smooth.
Sylvester Stallone Yelled At Dolph Lundgren On The Sets Of The Expendables
Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren were Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago off-screen as well. The two actors seemingly disliked each other. Almost four decades have passed since Rocky IV and the actors still have their differences like in the 90s. Lundgren commented on this rivalry in an interview with Variety that they were like family who had both good and bad times.
Lundgren was part of the ensemble cast for Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables. The Aquaman actor played one of the mercenaries on Stallone’s team. However, the filming of the 2010 movie saw some ugly scenes brewing between the Escape Plan actor and Lundgren. Stallone reportedly yelled at the Castle Falls actor and subjected him to 20 takes for a scene. Lundgren recounted:
“It was like, ‘My grandmother could do it better than that. What the fuck, what are you doing?’ You know, basically in front of everybody. And there was press there that day too, international press. We took a lunch break and I remember I was kind of in tears. I was really upset. I called my wife that time and I basically just told her, ‘If he says one more word, I’m gonna knock him out and fuck this movie, I’m outta here. I’m just gonna punch him out and fucking leave.'”
However, the Tulsa King actor apologized for the whole incident and Lundgren also forgave Stallone for his “crazy Italian” behavior, as he called it. The Punisher actor later reprised his role as Gunner Jensen in the Expendables sequels and is set to reprise the role once again in the upcoming Expend4bles.
Sylvester Stallone Also Lashed Out At The Ivan Drago Spin-Off
Sylvester Stallone was not happy when news leaked about a Rocky spin-off centered around Ivan Drago. The 77-year-old actor, in a now-deleted Instagram post, raged against the Rocky producer Irwin Winkler. The Samaritan actor accused the producer and his “selfish useless” children of exploiting yet another great Rocky character.
Reportedly, Stallone was not informed of discussions regarding the spin-off, and he was not for the idea, considering the franchise is already focused on developing the Creed movies. The Demolition Man actor also took a dig at Dolph Lundgren commenting, “Dolph, why? Not a phone call?”
Stallone further conveyed his disappointment at the Icarus actor in another Instagram post, sharing that Lundgren went behind his back for the project and that’s not something real friends do. However, the Missionary Man actor clarified that there was nothing official about the spinoff and that he was under the impression that Stallone would be involved in the project.
The two actors still remain friends and have mutual respect for each other, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be another beef coming up in the future between these senior actors.
Source: Variety
