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Highlights

• Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone's feud began in the '80s.
• The rivalry between Schwarzenegger and Stallone was fueled by their desire for attention and recognition.
• Despite their bitter rivalry, Schwarzenegger and Stallone eventually became best friend.

During the '80s, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone became huge deals both literally and figuratively. Since Stallone and Schwarzenegger starred in many incredibly successful films, many people may have assumed they were content. In reality, however, Schwarzenegger and Stallone were jealous of each other.

As a result of that jealousy, Stallone and Schwarzenegger infamously feuded for years. Many of their fans don't realize what led to the two action stars becoming friends after years of bad blood.

Why Did Arnold Schwarzenegger And Sylvester Stallone Feud?

Over the last several years, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone have both delighted in talking about their former feud. In 2023, Schwarzenegger appeared on the podcast "WTF with Marc Maron" and described the genesis of their feud around the 33-minute mark.

"The competition then came in the '80s. When I think, my movies started become more bigger and bigger. But he was always ahead of me career-wise and money-wise. When I was making a million dollars a movie, he already was making ten million dollars a movie."

Schwarzenegger continued, "So he was ahead, but then eventually I caught up and that's when the s**t hit the fan. He didn't like that. I didn't like him, you know, kind of all of sudden getting into my turf and having a ripped body. All of a sudden he was like out there with the ripped body."

"Everyone would walk to me and say, 'Can you believe Stallone's body?'" Schwarzenegger continued, "'Did you see how ripped he is? Did you see his upper pectoral muscle and the lower pec?' It was totally separated. 'Did you see his abs? I mean, that guy's got an eight-pack.'"

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"And I said, 'What am I? Am I chopped liver? What about my body?'" Schwarzenegger continued, "It was like, he was getting all the attention for the body and I was getting all the attention about the movies and the action. So, we started sort of, despising each other. We couldn't co-exist. It was one of those stupid things where he looked at me like the enemy and I looked at him as the enemy."

At the height of Schwarzenegger and Stallone's rivalry, the two actors actively rooted against each other. Most notably, Schwarzenegger tricked Stallone into starring in three of his worst movies by taking advantage of his peer's jealousy.

Considering how bitter Schwarzenegger and Stallone's rivalry once was, it is amazing they are close friends now.

How Did Arnold Schwarzenegger And Sylvester Stallone Become Best Friends?

After many years of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone hoping each other's films would fail, all that changed. In fact, Schwarzenegger and Stallone have even starred in four films together since 2010, three Expendables movies and Escape Plan.

As amazing as it was for fans to see Schwarzenegger and Stallone together on the big screen, their real-life relationship has been even more fascinating. After all, the two movie stars went from being enemies to becoming the closest of friends.

To prove just how close Stallone and Schwarzenegger have become, all anyone has to do is look on social media. Both men have documented their friendship on Instagram with Stallone even sharing a photo of them spending Christmas Eve together.

On top of that, both actors have expressed their love and admiration for each other repeatedly during interviews.

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Given how dramatic that change is, it is only natural for observers to wonder what changed. As it turns out, Schwarzenegger and Stallone had a foundation of friendship they eventually drew on.

During Schwarzenegger's aforementioned appearance on "WTF with Marc Maron", he explained that he and Stallone became friends during the '70s.

"In those days, we didn't rivalry at all. We were kind of supportive. As a matter of fact, he offered me a movie back in the '70s. The rivalry didn't start until later on." Schwarzenegger continued, "So he and I got along. We had the same agents, the same lawyers, everything the same."

Based on their early bond, it was clear Schwarzenegger and Stallone had the potential to be friends. Around the thirty-six-minute mark of Schwarzenegger's "WTF with Marc Maron" appearance, he explained how he and Stallone became pals again. As it turns out, Stallone and Schwarzenegger getting involved in the same business brought them together.

"We realized it was a game for us because deep down inside, I respected him and I thought that everything he did was really great, and he was like, multitalented. I appreciated all that because I didn't have that. I didn't have the skills to write scripts. I didn't have the skills to direct movies like he did."

Schwarzenegger continued, "In the end, when we became friends again because of Planet Hollywood. You see, Planet Hollywood was like, all of a sudden, we had to kind of promote those restaurants together. We flew around the world together. So we were finally back again."

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From the outside looking in, it is abundantly clear that Schwarzenegger and Stallone really value their friendship. As a result, the two rich and famous pals can't completely regret their investments in Planet Hollywood.

That said, there is no doubt that purely from a financial point of view, neither man got what they wanted out of Planet Hollywood. The reason that is obvious is there were headlines about Schwarzenegger and Stallone's dissatisfaction.

In the year 2000, it was announced that Schwarzenegger was pulling out of Planet Hollywood. In a statement, Schwarzenegger expressed his disappointment with how the company progressed.

“It was lots of fun and very challenging to come up with and develop the celebrity restaurant concept on an international level. Of course, I am disappointed that the company did not continue with the success I had expected and hoped for.”

In 2002, Stallone actually filed a lawsuit over his Planet Hollywood involvement. Stallone sued his former business manager for convincing him not to sell his Planet Hollywood stock before the company went bankrupt. Stallone sought $17.3 million in the lawsuit.

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