Sylvester Stallone was offered by former US President Donald Trump a high-ranking government position that would cater to the arts, but the Rocky actor humbly declined. This would have given him the responsibility of allocating government donations to arts organizations.
Even though he refused the offer, Stallone expressed interest in working for another government office that caters to the veterans. After starring in numerous war-themed films, the Italian Stallion would definitely fit in this position.
Sylvester Stallone Inclined To Work With The US Department of Veterans Affairs
Sylvester Stallone notably turned down Donald Trump’s arts position offer in 2016 as reflected in a statement released by the actor’s publicist via Variety. While he was “incredibly flattered to have been suggested to be involved with the National Endowment of the Arts,” Stallone believed he would be more ideal in the veterans department.
“I believe I could be more effective by bringing national attention to returning military personnel in an effort to find gainful employment, suitable housing, and financial assistance these heroes respectfully deserve.”
An insider told Daily Mail at the time that there were rumors about Trump appearing as a non-supporter of the arts and entertainment business. His offer to Stallone proved otherwise.
“It’s been widely and wrongly assumed that a Trump Presidency will be hostile to the arts. But Mr. Trump feels this sort of A-list appointment is precisely the shot in the arm that the industry needs.”
Although Stallone did not express his support for Trump amid the election, they have always been friendly towards each other. He said in another conversation with Variety:
“I love Donald Trump. He’s a great Dickensian character. You know what I mean? There are certain people like Arnold [Schwarzenegger], Babe Ruth, that are bigger than life. But I don’t know how that translates to running the world.”
Perhaps if the former US president offered the actor a role in the veterans department, Stallone would have gladly accepted it given his ardent passion for the military.
Sylvester Stallone Wanted Rambo To Have A Better Ending
Sylvester Stallone has become the champion of war veterans as many of his movie projects depicted the struggles and hopes of the military. In fact, the reason he wanted to work for the Veterans Office in the White House was because he was familiar with the traumas of soldiers.
In a Netflix documentary, the actor revealed he almost left 1982’s Rambo: First Blood because of its original ending. He said via Yahoo! News:
“At the very end, originally the way it was in the script, I am shot by Colonel Trautman and I die in slow motion. I said to the director, ‘This is not good.’ I don’t want everyone who is a Vietnam vet to see this film and [see] me shot and realize, ‘Oh, so there’s no hope for me at all. None.’ ”
He did not want to place any more burden on these war veterans, and the negative test screenings also encouraged the creative team to give its ending a more hopeful tone.
“At that time, they were losing 20,000 vets to s**cide a month. I said, ‘I don’t want to be part of it. I don’t. I’m not going to.’ ”
First Blood was a raging success for Stallone; it grossed over $125 million against a budget of $15 million. He returned for four more sequels with the final installment released in 2019.