Clint Eastwood Once Shot Down Acting With Sylvester Stallone in This Blockbuster Franchise
Sylvester Stallone has worked with many onscreen legends in his historic career. But one veteran he hadn’t collaborated with was his idol Clint Eastwood. Stallone eventually felt he’d written and directed the ideal movie for him and Eastwood to do together. Eastwood, however, thought otherwise of the team-up.
How Sylvester Stallone chose which actors to recruit for ‘The Expendables’
The Expendables trilogy is a series of successful action movies that’s united a couple of familiar faces from the action genre. Stallone has brought on board the likes of Dolph Lundgren, Wesley Snipes, Jason Statham, and other heavy-hitters for his hit project.
As the lead, Stallone has often had a say in who gets to be a part of The Expendables movies. He handpicked the members that he did due to their unique qualities.
“Because they’re one of a kind – to get them all together is very, very rare,” Stallone once told Collider about his casting choices. “Life takes us all down very different paths, so to get them together is an event. That’s the key word: an event. We’re trying to make an ‘event movie’. Just like The Avengers, why is it so great? Because you’re bringing all these characters together.”
Stallone shared his undying respect for action stars. To him, leading an action movie was perhaps more challenging, and more rewarding, than doing any other genre in film.
“The hardest thing is to find an action star. I don’t give a damn what anyone says, stars they come and go. An action star, you can count on one hand, because it’s a very interesting element. And I think all these guys have that potential, otherwise they wouldn’t be here. And they all blend,” Stallone said.
Clint Eastwood turned down Sylvester Stallone’s ‘Expendables 3’ because he preferred directing
Despite all the talent Stallone gathered for his Expendables franchise, there were still a few superstars he wanted to cast. Clint Eastwood was one icon who Stallone had his sights set on. But Eastwood himself was asked personally if he saw himself in Stallone’s action movies.
“Probably not,” Eastwood once told Extra TV (via Contact Music).
Still, Eastwood asserted he wouldn’t have minded being a part of The Expendables in a filmmaking capacity.
“I’m probably more apt to direct something. Maybe I’ll direct Expendables 3,” he added.
This would’ve required Eastwood to familiarize himself with the movies, which he admitted he knew very little of.
“I haven’t had the opportunity to see [The Expendables] yet. I haven’t read any material,” he said.
Sylvester Stallone called casting Clint Eastwood in ‘The Expendables 3’ a pipe dream
Although Stallone would’ve been more than happy for Eastwood to become an Expendables member, he doubted the casting would actually happen.
“Well, you know Clint is so involved with what he’s doing, so that’s kind of a pipe dream,” he said.
But Eastwood wasn’t the only acting veteran who was out of Stallone’s grasp for his action series. The Rocky star also offered Nicholson a slot in the franchise. But he couldn’t reach Nicholson in time.
“I was going to go up to Jack Nicholson and we just got there a little too late cause actually he had said he might be interested in it, so there are still interesting avenues out there. I want to get, if possible, the most unique actors from the past and just put ‘em on there once and for all, if we can,” Stallone said. “It just seems like an interesting quest to do that, because I don’t know if it’s ever going to happen again; we’re certainly not getting any younger.”
