Sylvester Stallone Says He ‘Became Bulimic’ After Transforming for ‘Rocky’ and Opens Up About the ‘Terrible Toll’ of Steroid Use: It Was An ‘Obsessive Body-Worship Kind of Thing’

Sep 26, 2026 10:11am PT Sylvester Stallone Says He ‘Became Bulimic’ After Transforming for ‘Rocky’ and Opens Up About the ‘Terrible Toll’ of Steroid Use: It Was An ‘Obsessive Body-Worship Kind of Thing’

By Payton Turkeltaub

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Payton Turkeltaub

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©United Artists/Courtesy Everett Collection

Sylvester Stallone is opening up about the less glamorous side of fame, revealing that he’s struggled with a tumultuous relationship with his body ever since he physically transformed to play the titular boxer in “Rocky.”

In a recent interview with The New York Times, the famed actor delved into his “intimate” relationship with his body and how it’s changed over time. “It was my armor. I looked at Rocky: very smooth, very normal-looking guy. And then I said, I think the character would start to become a bit more vain. And then in ‘Rambo,’ you’re playing a warrior, so you’d be a little bit more animalistic. You wouldn’t be so smooth,” he said. “So I started to think: Design your body like a jaguar, a cat. Not big like Arnold, but more feral and aggressive and very limber and athletic.”

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