Sylvester Stallone opens up about abusive father in new Netflix documentary

Actor Sylvester Stallone has revealed details of his past in new Netflix documentary, Sly, including memories of his abusive father.

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The documentary, which aired last week, shows Stallone delving into his childhood and rise to stardom, and features interviews with his co-stars including Quentin Tarantino and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Directed by Thom Zinney, the film features the Rocky star sharing intimate details of his experience growing up in New York and Maryland, including his challenging home life.

The actor hinted that his violent father inspired some of his previous work, saying: “My father was Rambo, in reality”, referring to his portrayal of John Rambo in the 2008 movie, Rambo.

He continued, “I was raised by a very physical father. Nothing was ever settled verbally. It was usually a physical ultimatum.”

He described one particular incident from his past where his father punished young Stallone for riding a horse wrong during a polo match. Stallone shared: “He comes out of the stands, grabs me by the throat, throws me on the ground and takes the horse and walks off the field.

“And I laid there and I went, ‘I never want to see a horse again in my whole life.’”

Stallone’s brother, Frank Jr. described a generally tense household growing up, saying, “Our mother and father, it was like clockwork. I’d be up in bed and you’d just hear them screaming and yelling. And I was petrified, ‘cause I mean, I could just feel the reverberation.”

However, describing himself as “no stranger to serious pain” the 77-year-old The Expendables actor explained how the abuse ended up informing his resilient character. He said, “I think it just became, ‘I’m not gonna break.’”

Elsewhere, Schwarzenegger has admitted that his and Stallone’s rivalry got “out of control”.

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