'I'm Not as Tall as You Thought, Right?'
Sylvester Stallone was once on top of the world during the Rocky era. But despite all the good fortune playing the boxer brought him, it also took a toll on him mentally earlier on. So much so that he took his frustrations out on a group of party-goers who he thought were talking about his height.
How tall is Sylvester Stallone?
Sylvester Stallone’s height is something that might have been debated on for as long as he’s been a star. Being that he made a living as an action hero, it’s easy to see how many fans felt he was taller than he was. But it was a perception Stallone himself played a hand in fueling. In an interview with the New York Times, Stallone shared the estimates of his height.
“I’m exactly 5 feet, -10 1/2 inches and I weigh 176,” he said.
But according to Celeb Heights, Stallone has always stood at around 5 feet, -8 inches and some change. It was noted that Stallone would sometimes wear lifts to give the illusion he might have been taller. An Italian shoemaker also once quipped to the Chicago Times that he “made him (Sylvester Stallone) 4.5 inches taller for 16 years!”
Sylvester Stallone once snapped at party-goers because of his height
The era after Rocky was an interesting time for Stallone. Although the movie took his career to new heights, granting him fame and fortune, its popularity became a double-edged sword. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Stallone opened up about what the perception of Rocky did to The Expendables actor.
“I felt trapped by the Rocky image,” he said. “I thought: ‘Don’t people realize that I am not a supposedly thick-tongued, punchy individual? That I wrote this and I was involved in the production?’ But people were writing constantly about what a Neanderthal I was in private life, that I really was Rocky. That I was just snatched off the streets and that it was the only role I was capable of playing.”
This was evident thanks to a party he went to where some of the nation’s leaders were in attendance. Once again, he was only seen as his character instead of himself.
“Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter. They all said, ‘Pleasure to meet you, Rocky.’ And in the next breath, I turn around to visit the Senate chambers and Ted Kennedy knocks me on the shoulder: ‘Hey, Rock! Can I have three autographs for my kids?’ Right then, I know it’s over,” he recalled.
The tipping point came when Stallone noticed people looking at him while whispering. He’d had enough.
“That’s right. I’m not as tall as you thought, right? Okay. Now let’s move on, cut the chatter and enjoy this party,” he barked.
Sylvester Stallone accepted that he’d always be Rocky
Eventually, the Rambo actor figured the best way to get over his issues with his Rocky image was to accept it. But he no longer saw it as a bad thing.
“I am quite aware that I’m locked into this image forever. Forever,” Stallone said. “I could live ten lifetimes, I’ll always be Rocky. But maybe that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Maybe that’s what I was born to do.”
At the time the interview took place, he even predicted how he’d be playing the Italian Stallion for years to come. The interviewer wondered if Stallone’s acceptance of his character meant there would be a Rocky XXXVIII.
“No. I wish I could do that,” Stallone said ironically. “I think it would be very interesting to have a character come back every four or five years and watch him grow.”
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