Sylvester Stallone returns to painting after 'Tulsa King' and memoir
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Sylvester Stallone has returned to his art studio after a demanding summer split between filming the upcoming season of Tulsa King and completing his memoir. The Hollywood action legend shared the update on Instagram, posting a glimpse of a new painting that depicts two figures in boxing gloves, inscribed with the phrase 'It ain't about how hard you can hit.'
Back in the Studio
'It's been a busy summer with Tulsa King and finishing my memoir, so I haven't had much time to paint. I finally got back in my studio and started working on some new pieces. Feels good to be painting again. Keep punching,' Stallone wrote in his caption.
The post offered a rare look at Stallone's parallel creative life — one that exists well outside the action-film universe he helped define over five decades. His artwork often draws from the same world of grit, endurance, and sport that defines his on-screen persona.
What's Ahead for Tulsa King
Tulsa King, which debuted in 2022, stars Stallone as Dwight 'The General' Manfredi, an American Mafia caporegime released from prison in New York and relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he builds a new criminal organisation. The show marked his first leading role in a scripted television series.
The franchise is expanding significantly. A fourth season has been ordered, alongside a spin-off titled Frisco King, which will star Samuel L. Jackson. Both projects are currently in development.
A Career That Defined an Era
Stallone made his screen debut in 1970 with The Party at Kitty and Stud's, taking on uncredited roles in films like Downhill Racer and Bananas before his breakthrough. His mainstream launch came in 1974 with The Lords of Flatbush, but it was the 1976 blockbuster Rocky — which he wrote and starred in — that established him as a global icon.
He subsequently portrayed the PTSD-affected soldier John Rambo in First Blood, a role he reprised across five Rambo films. From the mid-1980s to the late 1990s, Stallone ranked among Hollywood's highest-paid actors, appearing in Cobra, Tango and Cash, Cliffhanger, Demolition Man, and The Specialist, during which his rivalry with Arnold Schwarzenegger became the stuff of industry legend.
Recent Work and Legacy
Stallone later anchored The Expendables franchise and in 2013 starred in Escape Plan, appearing in its sequels as well. His 2015 return to the Rocky universe in Creed — where a retired Rocky mentors Adonis Creed, the son of his former rival Apollo Creed — was widely praised as one of his finest performances. With Tulsa King expanding and a memoir on the way, Stallone shows no signs of slowing down — on screen or on canvas.