Sylvester Stallone Once Credited Almost All of His Success to the Man Who Accused Him of Stealing His ‘Script’ in an Unearthed Interview

Hollywood legend Sylvester Stallone is one of the most celebrated actors of our generation. He has built a solid reputation for himself in his field thanks to a distinguished career lasting more than 40 years. He did, however, once state in an interview that he attributes one particular athlete to his achievement.

It is a world-renowned fact that Stallone got the idea for his blockbuster flick ‘Rocky’ from the 1975 fight between boxing great Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner. Stallone was once quizzed in an interview about Ali, and he stated, “He is everything an athlete should be and a man should be. And will never see the likes of him again and I based Apollo Creed on him. Thank God a character like that existed, because I never would have thought one up.”

Additionally, Stallone and Ali once shared the stage at the Academy Awards. Hilariously, the great boxer blamed the ‘Rocky’ star for stealing his script from him. Ali kept accusing Stallone by saying, “you stole my script,” while the audience laughed at the entertaining interplay between the two legends.

DIVE DEEPER: ‘It Definitely Hurts Along the Way’: Sylvester Stallone’s Never-Before-Seen ‘Rocky’ Movie BTS Footage Left Fans’ Jaw-Dropped in a July 2022 Post

Well, Stallone gives Ali credit for his accomplishment since the latter served as the model for the character of Apollo Creed in his movie. The film was a big hit, and Stallone went on to create multiple sequels based on the story. 

How Muhammad Ali unknowingly helped Sylvester Stallone in becoming a global star 

Stallone once struggled to make it as a screenwriter and actor in New York. After having little success with the film ‘The Lords of Flatbush’, he moved to California. He had to sell his pet dog as he couldn’t afford to feed it because of his financial difficulties at the time.

Notably, during that difficult period, he went to see Ali and Wepner’s fight, which gave him the inkling of a script. Notably, Stallone finished writing the Rocky script in just three days. His story was turned into a movie, which went on to become one of the all-time great cult movies.

WATCH THIS STORY: These 5 Boxers Lost Over 4 Million in Fines

Meanwhile, what do you think about Stallone’s remarks about Ali? Let us know in the comments below.