- Title: USA: Sylvester Stallone shows star power at "The Expendables"
- Date: 4th August 2010
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) STALLONE ON THE INJURIES DURING FILMING, SAYING: "It was going to happen. Like it happened a lot on 'Rambo,' it happened a lot on "Ricky.' It just is the nature of my, I wish it did not happen, but it is just going to happen when you do physical encounters and you throw yourself into it. That is the price you pay." WIDE SHOT OF PREMIERE CARPET (SOUNDBITE) (English) STALLONE ON THE CONTROVERSY INVOLVING COMMENTS HE MADE ABOUT WORKING IN BRAZIL, SAYING: "I love Brazil. What it is, is every time we shot, there would be someone from the state and say, 'Make sure you don't scare any monkeys.' I said, 'I've never seen any monkeys.' Every time I was ready to shoot, they would say, 'Will that scare the monkeys?' I am like, 'What monkeys.' Then it became an ongoing joke, 'Are the monkeys happy, are the monkeys secure? Roll the camera.' It didn't quite come off like that." MICKEY ROURKE ON THE CARPET BRUCE WILLIS GREETING FANS (SOUNDBITE) (English) MICKEY ROURKE ON WORKING ON THE PROJECT, SAYING: "It was a nice experience working with him. I would work with him again and he put some interesting people in there that only he could gather together." ACTRESS CHARISMA CARPENTER FROM THE CAST OF "THE EXPENDABLES" (SOUNDBITE) (English) DOLPH LUNDGREN ON THE PHYSICAL CHALLENGES IN FILMING, SAYING" "Well, it was very difficult for everybody. As you get older, you want to be as strong and you think you are but you really aren't." (SOUNDBITE) (English) TERRY CREWS ON MAKING THE FILM, SAYING: "We did it old school. Now they would CGI your face on someone else's body, let me tell you my body took all the lumps." BRUCE WILLIS WITH EMMA HEMING AT THE PREMIERE DOLPH LUNDGREN SIGNING AUTOGRAPHS TERRY CREWS AND WIFE DOLPH LUNDGREN TERRY CREWS BEING INTERVIEWED DOLPH LUNDGREN BEING INTERVIEWED FORMER MIXED MARTIAL ARTIST CHAMPION AND CO-STAR IN "THE EXPENDABLES" RANDY COUTURE CAST MEMBER ERIC ROBERTS AT THE PREMIERE CAST MEMBER STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN AT THE PREMIERE ERIC ROBERTS BEING INTERVIEWED PUSH TO STALLONE, BRUCE WILLIS AND MICKEY ROURKE POSING FOR PHOTOS
- Embargoed: 19th August 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA1RX9PHRBW8S6V8WL2E95CC0P9
- Story Text: Sylvester Stallone may not carry the box office clout that he once did, but the iconic actor can still draw a crowd. The "Rocky" star shut down Hollywood Boulevard Tuesday night (August 03) in his return to the action film genre with the world premiere of "The Expendables."
Stallone was joined by his friends Bruce Willis and Mickey Rourke on the black carpet for the event that took place at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre.
"Like, when you get to my age, I approach everything like this could be your last film," explained the 64-year-old Stallone.
"So, that was why I was so hard on 'Rambo,' I didn't pull any punches. People go, 'It is so Bloody!' and I go, 'It's war.' I am not trying to win any friends, I am just trying to show you what is. The same thing with this kind of film, I just wanted to do a real interesting school, a genre film that is dead, it is almost gone. These people have not seen it for a while."
In the film, Stallone's Barney Ross leads a group of hard-core mercenaries who include former SAS blade expert Lee Christmas, (Jason Statham), hand-to-hand combat specialist Yin Yang (Jet Li), long barrel weapons specialist Hale Caesar (Terry Crews), demolition's expert Toll Road (Randy Couture), and precision sniper Gunnar Jensen (Dolph Lundgren). Living life in the fringes of the law, they take on what appears to be a routine assignment: a covert, CIA-funded operation to infiltrate the South American country of Vilena and overthrow its ruthless dictator General Garza (David Zayas). But when their job is revealed to be a suicide mission, the men are faced with a deadly choice.
Stallone, who co-wrote and directed the film, said everyone on the set had to deal with injuries.
"It was going to happen. Like it happened a lot on 'Rambo,' it happened a lot on "Ricky.' It just is the nature of my, I wish it did not happen, but it is just going to happen when you do physical encounters and you throw yourself into it. That is the price you pay," said Stallone.
Co-star Dolph Lundgren agreed that the action stars are not getting any younger.
"Well, it was very difficult for everybody. As you get older, you want to be as strong and you think you are but you really aren't," said Lundgren, who first starred with Stallone in "Rocky IV."
Stallone also tried to mend a growing rift with the people of Brazil, where the majority of "The Expendables" was filmed.
The actor created some bad feelings recently when he joked that, "You can shoot people and blow things up and they say, 'Thank you! Take a monkey home with you!'
"I love Brazil," Stallone told Reuters, explaining that his comments were really just a bad joke.
"What it is, is every time we shot, there would be someone from the state and say, 'Make sure you don't scare any monkeys.' I said, 'I've never seen any monkeys.' Every time I was ready to shoot, they would say, 'Will that scare the monkeys?' I am like, 'What monkeys.' Then it became an ongoing joke, 'Are the monkeys happy, are the monkeys secure? Roll the camera.' It didn't quite come off like that."
Reuters did not have the opportunity to ask a follow up question on reports that allege that Stallone and producers on the film left a string of unpaid debts to local partners and workers in Brazil.
"The Expendables," which Stallone co-wrote and directed, also includes cameos by Willis and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The film opens on August 13. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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