Most of the time, when Sylvester Stallone's in the movie, it's all about Sly.
However, there are roles in which Stallone deferred the limelight but sometimes managed to shine – or at least lend his weight to the production.
1. Not so much a supporting actor as a co-star, Stallone's one of an ensemble of former screen tough guys in the movie franchise, "The Expendables," in which he's sharing the screen with the likes of action-movie heavyweights Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren, and Jason Statham.
In fact,
Eric Eisenberg of CinemaBlend even goes so far as to say the chief problem that the third installment of the series (besides seeking a milder PG-13 rating) had was that it was "a Sylvester Stallone movie instead of an ensemble movie."
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2. But, before his star took off as "Rocky," Stallone acted alongside another future superstar, Henry Winkler, in "Lords of Flatbush," (Or "Lord's," if you want to go by the misspelled motorcycle jacket logo that forms the onscreen title) a 1974 tale of a teen gang – more of a social club, really — unwillingly facing adulthood in late 1950s Brooklyn.
Alongside Winkler's "Butchey Weinstein," Stallone played "Stanley," who has to marry his girlfriend, Frannie, because she's pregnant. Reviewers at the time didn't appear to have much to say about Stallone, but
fan reviews written years later on IMDb note Stallone's "Stanley" seems to be the member of the group with some heart and imagination.
3. It doesn't get more "supporting" than being a voice actor for a secondary character in an animated movie, but that's what Stallone did when he voiced the character of Weaver — an ant. Weaver's the friend of an ant named Z, voiced by Woody Allen in 1998's computer-animated "Antz."
4. "Rocky" or "Rambo" in a kids' action comedy? Stallone's the multiple-personality villain, the Toymaker, in 2003's "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over." It was his first try at a comedy part since "Antz" five years before.
As USA Today put it in its review, "Stallone will not just be smashing preconceptions; he'll be doing it several times over."
One role, multiple parts, maybe? Stallone described the multiple facets of the Toymaker as ranging from "George C. Scott … after a gallon of espresso" to "The Hippie … definitely a throwback to Haight-(Asbury)"
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