Sylvester Stallone is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer who has a net worth of $400 million dollars. As of this writing, Stallone’s movies have generated more than $4 billion in global revenue. Unlike most Hollywood stars, Sylvester has written, produced, and/or directed many of his major franchise movies.
After writing the screenplay for “Rocky” in just three days, Stallone found interest in his project at multiple studios. United Artists was the front runner but they wanted it as a starring vehicle for Robert Redford of James Caan. He relentless pressured the film’s producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff to allow him to star in the movie. He accepted a cut-rate salary of $23,000 for the film. That’s the same as around $110,000 today. The movie went on to earn $225 million on a budget of $1 million.
In 1982 he earned $3.5 million for “First Blood”. The following year he earned $10 million – the inflation equivalent of $25 million – and earned his first Producer credit for “Staying Alive”. He earned $4 million and his second Producer credit for 1984’s “Rhinestone”. The following year he earned $12 million and another Producer credit for Rocky IV. He earned another $12 million for “Over the Top”. For Rambo III he earned $16 million. Sylvester earned $15 or $16 million for each of the following films:
Lock Up
Tango & Cash
Rocky V
Oscar
Demolition Man
Judge Dredd
Assassins
The Specialist
The Expendables I
The Expendables II
Stallone earned $17.5 million for “Daylight”, $20 million for “Driven” and another $20 million for “Eye See You”.
Between the 1970s and 2012 alone, Sylvester Stallone earned $300 million in base film salaries alone. After adjusting for inflation, his earnings from this period alone were worth roughly $500 million in today’s dollars.
