![](https://image-cdn.essentiallysports.com/wp-content/uploads/GettyImages-1088731374-1.jpg?width=600)
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VALENCIA CA – MAY 2 : Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1982 is friendly and obliging with the press as Conan the Barbarian is about to released and Arnold is on his way to being a star. During the day long shoot Arnold rode his Harley Davidson, Skeet Shot with a shotgun, posed in his Santa Monica office and also looked at slides in his Santa Monica home when he was dating girlfriend Maria Shriver. May 2, 1982 shooting clay pigeons at Oak Tree Gun club, Valencia ( Photo by Paul Harris/Getty Images)
![](https://image-cdn.essentiallysports.com/wp-content/uploads/GettyImages-1088731374-1.jpg?width=600)
via Getty
VALENCIA CA – MAY 2 : Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1982 is friendly and obliging with the press as Conan the Barbarian is about to released and Arnold is on his way to being a star. During the day long shoot Arnold rode his Harley Davidson, Skeet Shot with a shotgun, posed in his Santa Monica office and also looked at slides in his Santa Monica home when he was dating girlfriend Maria Shriver. May 2, 1982 shooting clay pigeons at Oak Tree Gun club, Valencia ( Photo by Paul Harris/Getty Images)
Arnold Schwarzenegger is a bodybuilding legend who became a Hollywood star. The seven-time Mr. Olympia transitioned from bodybuilding to acting during the early 80s. With Conan the Barbarian, Arnold’s popularity exploded. However, during the fledgling stage of his Hollywood career, the ‘Austrian Oak’ developed a rivalry with a fellow star, Sylvester Stallone.
The pair first met at the 1977 Golden Globe Award ceremony, where Arnold beat Stallone to win his first Golden Globe. Their rivalry became iconic and redefined the action movie genre. The rivalry also influenced creative decisions. Arnold recalled how fierce their competition was during a recent interview.
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Arnold Schwarzenegger became a mass annihilator on screen
The seven-time Mr. Olympia appeared on “The Issue Is”. The host, Elex Michaelson, asked Arnold about his iconic rivalry with Hollywood icon Sylvester Stallone in the 80s and 90s. “We were very competitive and we both acknowledge that this was very important to our careers because competition creates performance,” said the seven-time Mr. Olympia.
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HOLLYWOOD – DECEMBER 13: California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, actor Sylvester Stallone and actor Bruce Willis arrive at the premiere of MGM’s “Rocky Balboa” at the Grauman’s Chinese Theater on December 13, 2006 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
The pair tried to beat one another in every way possible. “If the script in ‘Commando’ had 46 people that they killed, I had to go and kill 86 people just to make sure that there’s no way that he can beat that.”, said the former Mr. Olympia. The pair regularly compared who had the higher on-screen body count. However, the comparisons didn’t end at on-screen annihilation.
"I was trying to out-perform him, he was trying to out-perform me… what happened was: we got better."@Schwarzenegger talks his rivalry-turned-friendship w/ @TheSlyStallone.
The icons competed for more on-screen kills, bigger guns, etc.@Elex_Michaelson hosts @TheIssueIsShow pic.twitter.com/RLPEJCSlps
— The Issue Is (@TheIssueIsShow) November 19, 2022
“He would go and compete against me about who has bigger knives,” said the former governor of California. They also compared who had the bigger gun on-screen. “He has a gun in Rambo, his big gun from the helicopter, so then I got a bigger gun in the jungle,” said Arnold. Like Stallone’s scene where he destroys military equipment with a machine gun, Arnold and his squad mowed down trees in the jungle while shooting “Predator” (1987).
While Arnold said such things seem like “stupid competition,” it helped them make better action movies. “What happened was, we got better,” said Arnold.
From rivals to friends
Arnie and Sly disliked one another in the 80s and 90s. However, with time, the pair realized they could co-exist without trying to sabotage the other. Stallone and Arnold are now friends, supporting each other in their ventures. Stallone recently congratulated Arnold after the former bodybuilder organized a successful event for his charity, “After-School All-Stars”.
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Arnold and Stallone have also collaborated on screen in recent years. The pair shared lead roles in Escape Plan (2013), and Arnold has also appeared opposite Stallone in The Expendables movies.
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Watch this story – Arnold Schwarzenegger and Other Athletes Who Suffered From Depression and Anxiety
What’s your take on the rivalry? Who do you think won? Let us know in the comments.