The use of AI remains a hot-button issue in the Hollywood creative community amid fears that it will lead to job losses. The reality is that AI is already being used, and on some big movie projects. <\/p>\n
Iconic actors from Stallone’s generation, including Joe Pesci and Al Pacino, alongside Robert De Niro, were extensively de-aged using AI-driven visual effects software in Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” to portray their characters across several decades. <\/p>\n
More recently, Harrison Ford was transformed into a 1980s-era Indiana Jones for an opening sequence in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Lucasfilm used algorithms trained on decades of archived footage. <\/p>\n
“Every other person in the movie is real. They are just doing one character,” Stallone said. “I said, wow, that would be interesting. There are so many characters [to explore], like how did he get so crazy? How did he become this? Now you would understand the evolution. That is something I am working on.” <\/p>\n
The non-AI Stallone has earned his spot among Hollywood legends through blood, sweat, and tears. <\/p>\n With that success \u2014 ranging from big-screen films “Rocky” and “Rambo” to the series “Tulsa King,” which returns for its latest season on Friday on streaming platform Paramount+ \u2014 has come an equally impressive business backdrop despite not owning the rights to “Rocky.”<\/a> <\/p>\n Listen and subscribe to Power Players with Brian Sozzi on Apple Podcasts<\/a>, Amazon Music<\/a>, Spotify<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts. <\/p>\n Recognizing the power of controlling his own IP, Stallone expanded his earnings beyond simple acting fees \u2014 which routinely topped $15 million to $20 million per project \u2014 by taking on writer, director, and executive producer roles across his iconic “Rocky,” “Rambo,” and “The Expendables” franchises. <\/p>\n In 2018, Stallone formed his own media operations, founding Balboa Productions, a film and television outfit that has successfully commercialized projects like “Tulsa King” and “Samaritan.” <\/p>\n “There’s a very chilling effect when you bring up AI in the art community. And I totally get it because, boy, it makes things so much easier,” Stallone said. <\/p>\n Brian Sozzi<\/a> is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor, host of the Sozzi Unleashed<\/a> morning show and the Power Players with Brian Sozzi<\/a> podcast, and a member of Yahoo Finance’s editorial leadership team. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, and LinkedIn<\/a>. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com. <\/p>\n Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices<\/a> <\/p>\n Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance<\/a> <\/p>\n <\/a> Kennedy Center Honors recipient actor Sylvester Stallone poses on the red carpet for the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 7, 2025. (Reuters\/Jeenah Moon) \u00b7 REUTERS \/ Reuters <\/p>\n