Sylvester Stallone Signed on to a Film He Previously Rejected Because Dolly Parton Was in It
In 1984, Dolly Parton starred in Rhinestone alongside Sylvester Stallone. Many people noted that the musical comedy seemed like a strange choice for Stallone, who had been nominated for multiple Oscars. In fact, he initially turned down the part. When his agent asked him to reconsider and noted that Parton was in it, Stallone agreed to the role.
Sylvester Stallone agreed to be in a film because of Dolly Parton
Rhinestone was inspired by the song “Rhinestone Cowboy,” recorded by Glen Campbell. The song’s writer, Larry Weiss, spent years trying to turn the song into a film, but repeatedly hit obstacles. Multiple versions of the screenplay fell apart and development deals went nowhere. Per the book Smart Blonde by Stephen Miller, when Stallone received the script, he turned it down.
He shared an agent with Parton, though, and when she accepted a role, their agent implored him to reconsider. Stallone, who presented at the Oscars with Parton in 1983, reportedly said he would be interested if Parton was.
Dolly Parton blamed herself for some of the criticism Sylvester Stallone received
Critics lambasted the film. Stallone in particular took heat for his singing. He played a New York City cab driver whom Parton teaches to sing country music.
“Well, it’s true that Sylvester Stallone cannot sing country music,” Parton wrote in the book Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics. “But I’ll tell you what he can sing: old ’50s rock ‘n’ roll songs. That’s what he sang on the set, and it sounded good.”
Parton wrote the music for the film, and she felt bad that the music she wrote brought Stallone criticism.
“I had to write songs for him to sing, and a lot of people didn’t like that, because he really didn’t execute them very well,” she wrote. “But I think that had to do with the fact that they were so out of his realm. It wasn’t fair to him. I’ll take responsibility for that.”
She loved working with him
Though the movie was a critical failure, Parton and Stallone enjoyed working together. She was at a low point, and he brought joy into her life.
“No matter how big a financial disaster Rhinestone was, it was not all bad for me,” she wrote in the book Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business. “Sylvester Stallone made me laugh at a time when I really needed it. I have found no therapy more effective than laughing, although in this case there were probably less expensive ways to get it. I should point out that Sly Stallone is certifiably crazy. But he was a good kind of crazy, the kind I needed at that point in my life.”
Because of this, Parton reflects fondly on the film.
“After all, movies may come and go, but life is something we buy a ticket to every day — and it doesn’t come with popcorn,” she wrote. “To me, Stallone was better than popcorn. He was full of life and very healthy for me to be around (Lord, I’ve made him sound like a laxative).”
