Sylvester Stallone reveals 1974 feud with Richard Gere

In his new memoir, ‘The Steps’, Sylvester Stallone details the origins of a decades-long feud with Richard Gere that began during the 1974 filming of ‘The Lords of Flatbush’.

Stallone describes tensions starting during auditions, where he noted a positive experience improvising with Robert De Niro but clashed with Gere. During an improvisation, Stallone claims Gere grabbed his T-shirt and dug his fingernails into his skin. Stallone recounted asking director Stephen Verona if he could react as he would in real life, to which he replied, ‘I’d knock his teeth out.’

The conflict escalated during a lunch break when chicken grease spilled onto Stallone’s leg. This led to a physical confrontation where Stallone elbowed Gere and pulled him from a car seat. Following the altercation, director Stephen Verona removed Gere from the production, while Stallone remained in the cast.