Hollywood star Sylvester Stallone has worked with multiple actors throughout his career. And some of these have also established a lifelong bond of friendship. His Rocky IV co-star, Dolph Lundgren, is also among some of those names, as the two have remained friends since sharing the screen in the 1985 sports drama. However, it wasn’t always the same, as Stallone has admitted that he initially “hated” his co-star.

Dolph Lundgren and Sylvester Stallone in Rocky IV

Reflecting on their initial meeting in an interview, the actor openly admitted to harboring resentment toward Lundgren because of his imposing personality as he explained the reasons behind his initial disdain for the Universal Soldier actor.

Sylvester Stallone Explained Why He Hated Dolph Lundgren

Sylvester Stallone has not shied away from accepting the reason behind his early disdain for his co-star, Dolph Lundgren. He stated that he hated him as he’s an “amazing looking guy.” During a conversation at An Experience With, the actor once again delved into the reasons he hated Lundgren upon meeting him.

Rocky IV

“He walked in the room, and I hated him,” he said during the interview. The Expendables star has shared that he was looking for a “big, horrible, vicious guy” for Rocky IV and couldn’t find anyone except giant wrestlers and football players. So, when he saw The Punisher actor, he was caught off guard. Stallone explained,

“This guy has jumped the evolution scale by about a thousand years. He’s 6’6″, he has hair that you need a lawnmower to cut, cheekbones that look like a Harley, lips that they’re so big that if he flew over 10,000 feet they would explode…Neck, shoulders.” 

Dolph Lundgren as Ivan Drago

He further explained that not only did Lundgren have an intimidating appearance, but he was also a genius. The 66-year-old actor studied for a master’s degree in chemical engineering and even won a Fulbright Scholarship to study at MIT. However, he dropped out to pursue his dreams of becoming an actor.

Sylvester Stallone Recalled Getting Punched by Dolph Lundgren

During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Sylvester Stallone recalled his experience filming Rocky IV with Dolph Lundgren. The actor shared how his co-star’s one punch left him in hospital for four and a half days. “I mean, really, he hit me so hard in the chest that the next thing I know, I was in a low-altitude flight, in an intensive care,” he shared.

Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren

He has also shared that he had to spend nine days in the hospital after the incident. In his defense, Lundgren said that all he did was what he was told to do by Stallone himself as he asked to hit him for real. In a later interview, he also said that the Rocky star was “overworked,” stating that he wrote and directed the movie and had to come in the ring to film such intense fighting sequences as well.