"Toxic climate"

Sylvester Stallone is said to be a mean “Rambo” on set

(Bild: APA/dpa/Rolf Vennenbernd)

He is said to be a nasty "Rambo" on the set of his new series. Extras have accused Sylvester Stallone of disparaging them with derogatory remarks and creating a "toxic work environment" while filming his show "Tulsa King". Screenwriter Julie Benson revealed this in a (since deleted) tweet on X.

In "Tulsa King", Sly plays an aging mafia boss named Dwight "The General" Manfredi, who is released from prison after 25 years. In his exile in Oklahoma, he tries to set up a new crime network with a few unusual characters.

Stallone is said to have made fun of extras
Filming for the second season is currently underway in Atlanta. Benson shared a screenshot of a Facebook post in which Stallone complains to director Craig Zisk: "What the fuck is happening with this fucking ugly background?" He is referring to the extras that can be seen in the background of the scene.

Benson writes: "Stallone and the director then gave some of the extras horrible names like 'bacon tub' or 'fat guy with a cane' and laughed about it. They made fun of weight and disabilities. Then Sly said: 'Bring me some beautiful young girls to be around me!"

Casting agent threw in the towel
According to Benson, casting agent Rose Locke was "so disgusted by this that she threw in the towel". She then tagged Stallone with, "What do you have to say in your defense, Sylvester Stallone? More than disappointed, I'm beside myself with rage!"

On Facebook, an anonymous extra confirmed the incidents on set, "I was standing right behind Mr. Stallone who used a lot of F-bombs (the word fucking). He was very angry about the looks of the extras and thought they were abysmally ugly, old and fat. Some were sent away again and younger people were brought on set."

"Toxic working environment"
An alleged screenshot of an email from Locke also ended up on Facebook. In it, the casting agent writes: "I ended up quitting my job because of the toxic working environment. I wasn't prepared to work in one or put up with extras."

Serious accusations against Sylvester Stallone: Did the actor create a "toxic work environment" on the set of his series "Tulsa King"?(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Ethan Miller)

Another crew member commented on the Facebook entry with: "I was standing too far away to hear what Stallone was whispering to the director - though there was an overweight extra with a cane. But Sylvester very obviously didn't want to be there and left after an hour and a half. I LOVE Stallone, but I'm very disappointed in him."

Wrong extras cast?
Zisk, who is also a producer, defended himself and his star against the accusations on TMZ. He accused Locke of casting the wrong extras: "We were shooting a scene in a hip bar for young people. The plan was to hire actors between 25 and 35. But most of them were much older."

According to Zisk, he still ended up shooting the scene with the people who were there. When he later complained about this to Locke, who was not on set, "she quit!"

He also defends Stallone and denies that the 77-year-old said anything about "pretty young girls": "That's not true. Especially as his wife Jennifer was on set with him!"