Sylvester Stallone’s The Lords of Flatbush did not make a lot of success at the box office, but the actor did gain critical acclaim for portraying a messy teenager in a leather jacket in his 1974 movie. But, his destructive on-screen character was as real as it comes. Stallone and Gere couldn’t ever make mends since their on-set feud.
During the filming of the movie, The Rocky star garnered media attention and ignited bizarre rumors about his on-set feud with ever-charming, Richard Gere, who dropped a half chicken on his thigh during a lunch break, something that cost Gere Chico Tyrell’s role.
Richard Gere Was Fired After Sylvester Stallone Took Him Down
Richard Gere’s hardcore hate for Sylvester Stallone began on the set of The Lords of Flatbush. During the movie’s filming in 1973, Sylvester Stallone got into a nasty feud with Richard Gere as he threw him out of his car during a lunch break for dropping chicken on his thigh.
The First Blood actor explained in an interview years later:
“The original part of Chico, which was played by Perry King, was originally supposed to be played by Richard Gere, but we never hit it off…I elbowed him in the side of the head and basically pushed him out of the car.
The director had to make a choice: one of us had to go, and one of us had to stay. Richard was given his walking papers and to this day seriously dislikes me.”
Stallone revealed that the movie’s directors, Martin Davidson and Stephen F. Verona, had to choose between him and Gere, and they ultimately sent Gere home. The incident sparked bizarre rumors, one being, Gere had to be rushed to the hospital after “getting a gerbil up his rectum.”
It was reported that Stallone warned him during their break, “If it gets on my pants you’re gonna know about it.” As for their respective careers, the two have continued to work on very “different sides of cinematic tastes”. While Stallone is all about muscle and power, Gere is rather known for portraying genteel characters in romantic movies.
Sylvester Stallone Got Jealous Of Richard Gere and Princess Diana’s Equation
Sylvester Stallone starred as Stanley Rosiello in The Lord of Flatbush while Richard Gere‘s Chico Tyrell’s role went to Perry King. The movie may have managed to see light following Gere’s firing and all sorts of rumors, but it was Stallone’s anger against Gere that never subsided.
During Elton John’s party, where Princess Diana was also present (following her divorce from Prince Charles), Sylvester Stallone once again took down Richard Gere for getting close to the Queen of Hearts. During his 2019 autobiography, Me, Elton John revealed:
“The most peculiar scene developed. Straight away, Richard Gere and Diana seemed very taken with each other. “As the rest of us chatted, I couldn’t help but notice a strange atmosphere in the room.
Judging by the kind of looks he kept shooting them, Diana and Richard Gere’s newly blossoming friendship was not going down well with Sylvester Stallone at all.
I think he may have turned up to the party with the express intention of picking Diana up, only to find his plans for the evening ruined.”
As a result, Stallone took Richard Gere outside and got into a scuffle. The English singer had to intervene to stop their fistfight over the now-deceased princess. Stallone, however, left the party disappointed and filled with rage.
The Lord of Flatbush (1974) is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
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Source: Express
