HEALTHSylvester Stallone Says He Became 'Bulimic' While Filming Several Movies
Sylvester Stallone's obsession with maintaining his iconic action-movie physique led to bulimia and steroid use.
Sept. 29 2026, Published 2:09 p.m. ET
Sylvester Stallone revealed that the body transformation that made him a movie icon eventually spiraled into a serious eating disorder.
"It got to the point where I became bulimic," the actor admitted during a recent appearance on "The Interview" podcast.
He Designed His Physique to Be 'More Animalistic'
Sylvester Stallone treated his body like armor for his movie roles.
The Rambo icon explained that his body once served a specific purpose beyond looks. "It was my armor," he said, describing how each role shaped a different physical approach.
"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," he explained. "And then in Rambo, you're playing a warrior, so you'd be a little bit more animalistic. You wouldn't be so smooth."
The Hollywood legend continued, "So I started to think: Design your body like a jaguar, a cat. Not big like Arnold [Schwarzenegger], but more feral and aggressive and very limber and athletic."
The Fixation Turned Into Bulimia
Sylvester Stallone became dangerously obsessed with body fitness while filming 'Rocky III.'
The 80-year-old acknowledged that the mindset eventually consumed him.
"I got down to 2.6 percent body fat when I was doing Rocky III, and I couldn't hold anything down," he stated. "Or I didn't want to keep it down because I became so obsessed with staying at that point of fitness, literally an obsessive body-worship kind of thing."
Steroids Played a Role Too
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Sylvester Stallone admitted using drugs for fitness, noting it took a terrible toll on his body.
The Golden Globe winner didn't shy away from addressing drug use.
"Nobody does it without additives and drugs, period. I don't care what they say," declared the Rocky performer, adding that he cycled the substances deliberately, "six weeks on, six weeks off."
"People go, 'Oh, you don't get that way naturally.' No, you don't," he said. "But that also took a terrible toll."
One Role Finally Gave Him Relief
The star said he's 'abused' his body.
Stallone admitted that playing against type offered an unexpected sense of freedom.
"It wasn't until I did Cop Land, when I had to play the weakest guy in the room, partially deaf, overweight, that I felt somewhat liberated," the multiple-time Oscar nominee said.
"But yeah, I've abused my body," the Tulsa King lead confessed
He Says He'd Do Things Differently Now
The actor's memoir comes out on September 29.
These days, the action star no longer views his physique the same way.
"If I could do it over again, I would say, 'Let someone else carry the banner and don't do your own stunts,'" he said, before wondering, "I don't know what it was about just hurting myself all the time."
Stallone's memoir, The Steps, arrives Tuesday, September 29.
