SYLVESTER STALLONE: “I Wasn’t Stupid. I Was Just Misunderstood.”

Episode of On Purpose with Jay Shetty · September 28, 2026 · 1 h 29 min

Jay Shetty interviews Sylvester Stallone about his painful childhood, rejection, creating Rocky, his parents, career slumps, health, marriage and his memoir The Steps.

Summary

Jay Shetty spoke with Sylvester Stallone about his memoir The Steps. Stallone opened with the story of a fortune teller he met around age 21 who, he said, predicted much of his future, including fame by 1975–76, and urged listeners to write down their early thoughts. He recalled regretting being too shy to accept Elvis Presley's 1976 invitation to watch Rocky with him and described overcoming fear of public speaking.

Stallone described being unwanted by his parents, living in a Queens boarding house, growing up physical and combative in Hell's Kitchen, and finding refuge in cinema. He argued that words leave permanent internal scars, and that being repeatedly called stupid by his father motivated him to write a screenplay others could understand. He described "mirror therapy" as his way of making peace with rejection, explained that writing about Edgar Allan Poe taught him to create characters, and recounted refusing a $360,000 offer to sell Rocky without starring in it, calling it a temptation he would have regretted forever.

He discussed channeling unspoken feelings toward his father into the Mickey scene, his view of Rocky as a love story, his mother's emotional cruelty including an incident in which he said she pushed him through a window, and his parents' reconciliation near his father's death. Stallone said he wasted years being angry and competitive until about age 70, described an eight-year career slump ended by writing Rocky Balboa, and listed health problems including nine back operations and heart attacks.

Later he reflected on friendship, his 29-year marriage to Jennifer Flavin, the importance of patience, letting go after 40, pairing dreams with concrete vision, overcoming writer's block, and his father's apology. In the closing questions he cited the "eye of the tiger" as his best advice and urged people to be honest about their abilities.

Chapters

0:55
The fortune teller and writing things down
Stallone recounts a fortune teller's predictions and recommends recording early thoughts.
5:07
Missing Elvis and conquering fear
Stallone regrets declining Elvis Presley's invitation and discusses overcoming fear of public speaking.
7:41
An unwanted childhood
Stallone describes parents who saw him as a burden, a Queens boarding house, Hell's Kitchen and cinema as his church.
13:22
Rejection and mirror therapy
Stallone explains how words scar, how he used self-talk in the mirror, and how writing about Poe led to Rocky.
22:17
Wanting an opportunity to fail
Stallone discusses the desire for a chance to prove oneself, illustrated by a Hells Angels leader sparring Gerry Cooney.
27:59
Turning down $360,000
Stallone explains why he refused to sell Rocky without playing the lead.
31:35
Becoming Rocky and channeling pain
Stallone describes imposter syndrome, inhabiting the character, and drawing on his father in the Mickey scene.
39:08
Rocky as a love story and his mother
Stallone discusses Rocky's sensitivity and his mother's cruelty and lack of pride in him.
46:12
Parents' final days
Stallone recounts his parents' late reconciliation and his father's deathbed advice to be kind.
53:03
Letting go of anger and the career slump
Stallone describes ending his combative approach around 70 and writing Rocky Balboa to escape an eight-year slump.
59:06
Health, friendship and marriage
Stallone talks about his injuries and heart attacks, a 65-year friendship and patience in his marriage.
1:13:19
Dreams, writing and his father's apology
Stallone discusses pairing dreams with vision, beating writer's block, and the painful memory of his father's apology.
1:19:36
Final five questions
Stallone answers rapid-fire questions on advice, luck, The Steps and a universal law.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says a fortune teller he met in his early 20s made predictions of which roughly 80% came true, including fame by 1975–76.
“I wrote down everything, and I would say 80% came true”
Listen from 1:18 · Fortune-telling
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he was too shy to accept Elvis Presley's 1976 invitation to watch Rocky with him and urges people not to pass up such opportunities.
“1976 when Rocky came out, he invited me to Tennessee to his home and to go to a local theater and watch Rocky with him alone”
Listen from 5:30 · Regret
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says his parents told him he had cost them their destiny and treated him as a burden.
“they actually said it to my face, where you impeded on our life. You cost us our destiny”
Listen from 9:49 · Child abuse
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone argues that hurtful words leave permanent internal scars, especially on children.
“Words are literally verbal bullets that will penetrate you, pierce you, scar your interior forever”
Listen from 14:06 · Child abuse
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he made peace with rejection through 'mirror therapy', talking to himself to understand his strengths and weaknesses.
“I used, I guess you might say, a strategy called mirror therapy. I would actually talk to myself”
Listen from 16:39 · Rejection
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says writing about Edgar Allan Poe taught him to write beyond himself, preparing him to create Rocky.
“I didn't know how to write very well until I wrote about Edgar Allan Poe”
Listen from 17:48 · Screenwriting and writer's block
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says being called stupid by his father motivated him to write a screenplay others could understand.
“that was motivation for proving I wasn't stupid by actually writing a screenplay that other people could understand and identify with”
Listen from 19:47 · Rocky (1976 film)
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says selling Rocky without starring in it would have been selling out and would have made him miserable for life.
“if this was going to be my gateway to heaven, if I sold it for money, I'm going to hell”
Listen from 28:30 · Rocky (1976 film)
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he played the Mickey scene as what he had wanted to say to his father.
“I'm gonna play this scene, like what I've wanted to say to my father. and I never did”
Listen from 33:54 · Rocky (1976 film)
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says in his original script the loan shark was Rocky's brother but he was made to change it.
“no one ever realized it, but in the movie, the loan shark was his brother. And they made me change it”
Listen from 40:12 · Rocky (1976 film)
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he wasted much of his life on anger and competition until he stopped around age 70.
“it took me until maybe 70 years old to stop doing that. to just like, let it lie”
Listen from 53:28 · Forgiveness
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he rewrote Rambo from the novel's homicidal maniac into a man running from violence.
“When I took it over and started to rewrite it, I had him running away from everything, avoiding it, trying not to confront his demons”
Listen from 54:01 · First Blood
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says after an eight-year slump he wrote Rocky Balboa, a film about grief, which studios rejected before it became a hit.
“the studio said, You're over, and Rocky is dead. You both are finished. And I found one person who said, all right, let's just give it a try”
Listen from 54:43 · Rocky Balboa (film)
Linked moment · 59:06Skip to 59:06 using a listen link in the info box.
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says years of physical punishment left him with nine back operations, three neck fusions and heart problems, and advises young actors to use stuntmen.
“I've had nine back operations, three neck fusions. I've had heart problems”
Listen from 59:13 · Aging
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone credits his wife's patience with sustaining their marriage and says he says 'I love you' every night.
“I never go to bed without saying I love you, ever. Never, ever”
Listen from 1:04:33 · Marriage and long-term partnership
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone says he overcomes writer's block by refusing to leave his desk until ideas come.
“You block the block. You sit there and I'm going to outlast you”
Listen from 1:13:44 · Screenwriting and writer's block
Sylvester Stallone
Stallone advises people down on their luck to be honest about their talent, arguing ambition should not exceed ability.
“Your ambitions should never exceed your ability. Period”
Listen from 1:21:12 · Rejection

People

In the conversation

Jay ShettyBritish author, podcast host and former monk who hosts On Purpose
Sylvester StalloneAmerican actor, screenwriter and director known for the Rocky and Rambo franchises; author of the memoir The Steps

Discussed

Elvis PresleyAmerican singer who invited Stallone to watch Rocky with him in 1976
Muhammad AliAmerican heavyweight boxing champion
Gerry CooneyHeavyweight boxer Stallone trained with
Edgar Allan PoeAmerican writer about whom Stallone wrote a screenplay
Daniel Day-LewisActor Stallone quoted on truthful acting
Jennifer FlavinSylvester Stallone's wife, whom he credited with raising their daughters and saving his life
Jane OliverAgent Stallone credits with picking him out early in his career

Topics

Sylvester Stallone Hid His Struggles for Decades. Now He’s Coming Clean.
The Daily · Sep 26, 2026 · 1 h 17 min
Sylvester Stallone tells Lulu Garcia-Navarro about his abusive childhood, anxiety, bulimia and steroid use, his rivalry with Schwarzenegger, and career collapses and comebacks.

From the publisher

Jay sits down with Sylvester Stallone to trace the extraordinary journey from a painful, unwanted childhood to the creation of Rocky, and the $360,000 offer he turned down rather than compromise his self-respect. Stallone reflects on the decades of rejection, health struggles, and career setbacks that shaped the man behind the legend. He opens up about his mother’s emotional distance, his father’s advice on his deathbed, and the life philosophy he discovered only after letting go of the need to constantly fight. With Love and Gratitude, Jay Shetty Mazda crafts cars for people who do more than simply move. Visit Mazdausa.com to learn more. Consumer reports does not endorse products or services. JAY'S DAILY WISDOM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX Join 900,000+ readers discovering how small daily shifts create big life change with my free newsletter. Subscribe here: https://news.jayshetty.me/subscribe Check out our Apple subscription to unlock bonus content of On Purpose! https://lnk.to/JayShettyPodcast What We Discuss: 00:00 Introduction 01:09 The Steps 01:48 The Fortune Teller Who Predicted His Future 03:39 The Power of Writing Your Thoughts Down 05:10 The Regret of Not Meeting Elvis Presley 05:55 Overcoming His Fear of Public Speaking 08:30 Birth Complications & Childhood Hardships 10:00 Queens Boarding House 11:40 Cinema As Sanctuary 13:23 The Words That Left Internal Scars 14:54 Making Peace With Rejection & "Mirror Therapy" 19:15 Writing About Edgar Allan Poe & Creating Rocky 20:27 Using Cruel Labels As Motivation 24:25 The Hells Angels Story 27:59 Turning Down $360,000 To Sell Rocky 31:35 Imposter Syndrome & Stepping Into Rocky's Shoes 33:29 Channeling Real-Life Pain In Acting 38:00 Rocky As A Love Story 41:26 The Painful Relationship With His Mother 49:45 Parents' Final Days 53:47 Learning To Let Go of Anger 56:12 An 8-Year Career Slump & The Return Of Rocky 59:06 Health Battles, Borrowed Time & Aging Gracefully 01:02:20 What Makes A Good Friend? 01:03:25 The…

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on October 3, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: TV & Film·Film Interviews·Self-Improvement