At the age of 77,  Sylvester Stallone  continues to play the role of a gray-haired mercenary, wearing a black beret with the signature symbol of the  Expendables , controlling military aircraft, combat helicopters, and custom motorcycles. . The action scene ranges from cities in the US, old chemical factories in Libya to the middle of the vast ocean, where an atomic bomb is about to be detonated.

According to  Independent , although the film has many problems, more importantly, it is the clearest proof of Sylvester Stallone’s persistence in action hero roles on the big screen.

At the age of 77, Sylvester Stallone still maintains the familiar image of a muscular hero on the big screen. Photo: Lionsgate.

From fierce youth

During a conversation with his daughters Sophie and Sistine in 2021, Sylvester Stallone revealed stories that surprised everyone.

During his childhood and adolescence, the veteran actor was classified as a “juvenile delinquent”. After being expelled from one school to another, he often hung out on Philadelphia street corners and began smoking. .

Sylvester Stallone’s teachers considered him “most likely to end up in the electric chair.” He suffered from attention disorder and was so disruptive that he was completely banned from the school system in Pennsylvania.

Sylvester Stallone still retains one of his school slips from this period. “I use that as an example. It shows that you can fail every class and still finish pretty well.”

Stallone’s story has many contradictions. He was a street rebel and discovered his calling as an actor while attending preparatory school in Switzerland.

Since his youth, Stallone had a passion for fantasy adventure films such as  The 7th Voyage of Sinbad  (1958), he liked “anything mystical that can take me away from my current position”. However, Stallone’s acting career began to take off with the role of Rocky, a boxer who initially lost his way, going through a difficult journey to assert his name.

To Hollywood’s most enduring action hero

In the recently released book  The Last Action Heroes , author Nick de Semlyen ranked Sylvester Stallone on the list of Hollywood’s  most famous muscular action actors  . He would not be in this position without Rocky and Rambo – the two most important roles in his career.

Sylvester Stallone trong phim ‘Rocky II’.

Sylvester Stallone’s name skyrocketed during Ronald Reagan’s tenure as US President. This powerful figure is also an ardent fan of him.

Sylvester Stallone participated in writing the script for  Rocky  (1976), and also played the main role. The film achieved great success with 2 Oscar nominations, for best actor and best original screenplay.

Regardless, when auditioning for the role of Rambo – the second character that made Sylvester Stallone’s career in acting – he was only the ’11th choice’. Every other actor shook their heads at the image described as an insane, homeless veteran who could take anyone’s life… in  David Morrell’s novel  First Blood .

Most actors could make Rambo a hideous character on screen, but Sylvester Stallone did a more meaningful job, creating an image that the public could sympathize with.

Rocky and Rambo have been associated with Sylvester Stallone’s name for decades, spanning from the late 20th century to the early 21st century, helping him achieve a series of successes in many aspects. Whenever mentioning Hollywood action heroes, the name Sylvester Stallone cannot be missed, alongside other icons such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, and Chuck Norris.

Image of Sylvester Stallone in the movie ‘Expendables 3’. Photo: The Playlist.

Even when the golden age of muscle action  movies  has passed, instead, there is the popularity of new action movies, with modern technology, especially fantasy and superhero movies. Marvel, DC, Sylvester Stallone still has his own place with the  Expendables series , as well as being present in the two recent parts of  Guardians of the Galaxy ,  The Suicide Squad  and many other action movies.

At the age of 77, appearing in  Expendables  4  shows that Sylvester Stallone is in the late flourishing phase of his acting career. A documentary about his life will soon premiere on Netflix.

Up to this point, perhaps fans of muscle action movies still see Sylvester Stallone as an indestructible hero.