Sylvester Stallone is throwing some punches.
The actor, 79, revealed that while playing his iconic role as Rocky Balboa in the 1976 sports action film, “Rocky,” one memorable moment was conjured up on the spot.
While talking to Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday’s episode of “The Tonight Show,” Stallone revealed, “When I got to Philadelphia and did the movie ‘Rocky,’ I wasn’t even thinking about the steps. We didn’t have any money to shoot there. We didn’t have the license.”
“I just got out of the car, I said, ‘Let me just run up the steps, get a shot of it and we’ll get out of here before the police come.’”
The crew shot more footage, but played around a few times to get it right.
“The first take, I said, ‘Let me carry my dog up the steps.’ My dog is a buffalo; it’s a 130 lb. bull mastiff. I get halfway up, my knees buckle,” the actor recalled. “We’re like, ‘Dog, out. Back in the car, pal.”‘
“Anyway, we did it and it became a very famous scene, but I thought it’s also a great name for a biography about the steps you make in your life to arrive. Because guys, trust me, I had zero going… the thing is, you’ve got to get to a point like, ‘Am I going to win or is life going to win?’ ” Stallone continued.
“It’s a battle. It’s a punch-out,” the “Tulsa King” actor said. “And it’s not easy because you’re always under the gun. No one ever really gets ahead of it, but it’s the fight you put up that gets you where you want to go. So, you just got to keep punching.”
Fans will get an inside look into even more behind the scenes details in Stallone’s upcoming memoir, “The Steps,” which hits shelves in May 2026.
In 2022, the star opened up about not owning the rights to the “Rocky” movie franchise, which include “Rocky II” (1979), “Rocky IV” (1985), “Rocky V” (1990), “Rocky Balboa” (2006), and its spin-offs, “Creed” (2015), “Creed II” (2018) and “Creed III” (2023).
While on SiriusXM’s “Pop Culture Spotlight with Jessica Shaw,” the host asked Stallone if there was any chance of “making peace” with Irwin Winkler, the 94-year-old who owns the rights to the movies in both the “Rocky” and “Creed” franchise.
“You can’t make peace with someone who’s been so, so nefarious in my, in my opinion,” Stallone replied.
The “Rambo” alum noted that “everyone made out well,” but no one was supposed to do better than anyone else.
Stallone also expressed that Stephen Spielberg doesn’t even own the rights to “Jaws.”
Instead, Universal Pictures owns the rights.
The actor said he and his family would never own the rights to the “Rocky” franchise, which has garnered over $1.7 billion, including its spin-offs.
The “Expendables” alum labeled the situation a “rough emotional ride,” and said he would never watch “Creed III,” which was released in March 2023.
At the time, Stallone said that since no bad blood with “Creed” star Michael B. Jordan, he would sign on for “Creed IV” as long as Winkler and his son, David, are not involved. However, Winkler later announced that a fourth film is in the works.
While Stallone is likely not heading back to his old stomping grounds, Variety reported the New York City native was paid $75,000 for his original screenplay and acting fees, plus 10 net points, which earned him at least $2.5 million on the first film.
The original “Rocky” raked in $225 million globally.
In 1983, Winkler shared his side of the story.
“Our commitment to him was that he could star in it,” he told The Hollywood Reporter.
“We convinced United Artists to give us the money to make it,” the director added. “They would only give us a limited amount of money, and they said that we had to put up our houses as collateral. We really mortgaged ourselves to make sure that we brought it in on time, and we did.”
