The 1980s were an era of classic iconic movies that would eventually grow into full-fledged franchises. Sylvester Stallone, an iconic actor from the roaring 80s would have been involved in the Beverly Hills Cop franchise if he wasn’t so adamant with the script.
Having written the script for Rocky years before the film was made, Stallone knew how to rework a script. After getting on board the movie Beverly Hills Cop, the actor made some significant changes to the script to make it more action-oriented with a wry sense of humor. The studio clearly didn’t like the changes and thus the Creed actor parted ways with Beverly Hills Cop.
Sylvester Stallone Was The Original Beverly Hills Cop
With a murder set against the backdrop of a conspiracy, the 1984 movie Beverly Hills Cop made the audiences fall in love with the genre of action/comedy. Although there were many prominent movies during that time, none became more so iconic and famous as the Beverly Hills Cop franchise.
The lead role in the movie was portrayed by Eddie Murphy who was praised by people around the world for his performance. It wasn’t a smooth ride from the pre-production to the release of the movie, however, since Eddie Murphy was not the first choice for the filmmakers to cast. According to reports, it was actually veteran actor Sylvester Stallone who was given the role before Murphy.
With a penchant for writing, Stallone was familiar with scripts. After signing the movie and reading the script, the Rambo: First Blood actor made some significant changes. Stallone recalled that he made the script a bit more action-oriented (since that’s what his fans would be expecting) and also gave the main lead an added wry sense of humor.
“Ron [Meyer] told me, ‘Don’t change it,’ but I took the script and rewrote it as a kind of a compromise, where the guy was action-oriented but he also had a wry sense of humor,” said Stallone.
Although the changes were praised by crew members, it would have eventually taken the film in another direction than what was originally intended. Naturally, the studio and Stallone had a fallout and Eddie Murphy was cast as the lead role. Beverly Hills Cop kickstarted the franchise while earning a whopping $316 million box office collection in 1984!
Sylvester Stallone Also Had To Drop Out of Creed III
Starring in the 2015 movie Creed wherein Stallone reprised his role as Rocky Balboa. The movie went on to receive multiple accolades and even received two sequels for fans around the world. Creed III, however, did not feature the actor due to his falling out with actors Michael B. Jordan and Irwin Winkler.
“That’s a regretful situation because I know what it could have been. It was taken in a direction that is quite different than I would’ve taken it. It’s a different philosophy — Irwin Winkler’s and Michael B. Jordan’s. I wish them well, but I’m much more of a sentimentalist. I like my heroes getting beat up, but I just don’t want them going into that dark space. I just feel people have enough darkness.”
With cars to his name and a successful Hollywood career behind him, Sylvester Stallone is also stated for a return in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 as the character of Stakar Ogord. The 1984 movie, Beverly Hills Cop is available to stream on Paramount+.
Source: The Things
