Sylvester Stallone speaks about 'devastating' death of his son Sage

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By Nasima Khatun

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Sylvester Stallone has spoken out about the "devastating" death of his son.

In a new documentary titled Sly, which officially debuted on Netflix on November 3 after its initial release in September, the 77-year-old opened up about the death of his son, Sage.

In July 2012, Sage suffered a medical emergency due to coronary artery disease and tragically passed away shortly after.

The father-son duo starred in the 1990 motion picture Rocky V where they took on the mirroring roles of Rocky Balboa and his son Robert. The pair had a strained relationship throughout the films as Rocky spent a massive portion of his time mentoring young boxer Tommy Gunn, which made Robert feel neglected.

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Sylvester Stallone his son Sage in Paris in 1995. Credit: ARNAL-PAT/Gamma-Rapho/Getty

In the documentary, Stallone admits that the difficult relationship we saw on the big screen was an accurate reflection of the relationship the actor had with his own son at the time.

Check out the trailer for Sly:

"I try to take something that actually is what I wish I had done in real life, but I wasn't able to do that in reality," the three-time Academy Award nominee said as per the Daily Mail. "And so quite often I would do it theatrically, magically ... a lot of that is true."

He also went on to outline the difficulties of balance, stating that it was difficult to prioritize his family during the peak of his career.

"Unfortunately, you put things before your family," he said in the documentary. "And the repercussions are quite radical and devastating."

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Actor Sylvester Stallone and son Sage attend the "Rocky V" West Hollywood Premiere on November 13, 1990. Credit: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty

Speaking of his relationship with his father back in 1996, Sage opened up about the similarities he portrayed in the Rocky franchise.

"When I was screaming, 'You never spent time with me! You never spent time with my mother,' that was true," he said. "I was looking into my father's face and really saying that."

Sage added that "after the film, everything changed" between him and his father - for the better, of course.

"I got a lot of things out," he admitted. "We broke into tears a few times. We'd do anything for each other."

There were numerous clips of the pair walking the red carpet for the premiere of Rocky V.

"There's a line in the movie, 'I'm so glad he's born because now I can live through your eyes,'" Stallone said at the premiere, as seen in the Netflix doc. "That, I think, is what fathers look to their children for. It's an extension of, a slice of immortality.

"As long as he's alive, your memory will always be alive, that you did something right. I mean, you hope for that," he added.

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Sylvester Stallone opened up about his strained relationship with his son. Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

After the death of his son, the 77-year-old opened up about how he was living with the grief.

"Time, hopefully, will heal, and you try to get through it, but it's just something,' he said during an interview on Good Morning America. "It's a reality of life. I think it's important to get back and start reliving your life. Otherwise, you can go into a spiral."

The actor is also father to daughters Sophia, 27, and Sistine, 25, and Scarlet, 21, with wife Jennifer Flavin, 55. He has two sons with first wife Sasha Czack, 73 - Seargeoh, 44, and Sage.

Sly is now available to watch on Netflix.

Featured Image Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty

Sylvester Stallone speaks about 'devastating' death of his son Sage

vt-author-image

By Nasima Khatun

Article saved!Article saved!

Sylvester Stallone has spoken out about the "devastating" death of his son.

In a new documentary titled Sly, which officially debuted on Netflix on November 3 after its initial release in September, the 77-year-old opened up about the death of his son, Sage.

In July 2012, Sage suffered a medical emergency due to coronary artery disease and tragically passed away shortly after.

The father-son duo starred in the 1990 motion picture Rocky V where they took on the mirroring roles of Rocky Balboa and his son Robert. The pair had a strained relationship throughout the films as Rocky spent a massive portion of his time mentoring young boxer Tommy Gunn, which made Robert feel neglected.

wp-image-1263235804 size-full
Sylvester Stallone his son Sage in Paris in 1995. Credit: ARNAL-PAT/Gamma-Rapho/Getty

In the documentary, Stallone admits that the difficult relationship we saw on the big screen was an accurate reflection of the relationship the actor had with his own son at the time.

Check out the trailer for Sly:

"I try to take something that actually is what I wish I had done in real life, but I wasn't able to do that in reality," the three-time Academy Award nominee said as per the Daily Mail. "And so quite often I would do it theatrically, magically ... a lot of that is true."

He also went on to outline the difficulties of balance, stating that it was difficult to prioritize his family during the peak of his career.

"Unfortunately, you put things before your family," he said in the documentary. "And the repercussions are quite radical and devastating."

wp-image-1263235805 size-full
Actor Sylvester Stallone and son Sage attend the "Rocky V" West Hollywood Premiere on November 13, 1990. Credit: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty

Speaking of his relationship with his father back in 1996, Sage opened up about the similarities he portrayed in the Rocky franchise.

"When I was screaming, 'You never spent time with me! You never spent time with my mother,' that was true," he said. "I was looking into my father's face and really saying that."

Sage added that "after the film, everything changed" between him and his father - for the better, of course.

"I got a lot of things out," he admitted. "We broke into tears a few times. We'd do anything for each other."

There were numerous clips of the pair walking the red carpet for the premiere of Rocky V.

"There's a line in the movie, 'I'm so glad he's born because now I can live through your eyes,'" Stallone said at the premiere, as seen in the Netflix doc. "That, I think, is what fathers look to their children for. It's an extension of, a slice of immortality.

"As long as he's alive, your memory will always be alive, that you did something right. I mean, you hope for that," he added.

wp-image-1263235806 size-full
Sylvester Stallone opened up about his strained relationship with his son. Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

After the death of his son, the 77-year-old opened up about how he was living with the grief.

"Time, hopefully, will heal, and you try to get through it, but it's just something,' he said during an interview on Good Morning America. "It's a reality of life. I think it's important to get back and start reliving your life. Otherwise, you can go into a spiral."

The actor is also father to daughters Sophia, 27, and Sistine, 25, and Scarlet, 21, with wife Jennifer Flavin, 55. He has two sons with first wife Sasha Czack, 73 - Seargeoh, 44, and Sage.

Sly is now available to watch on Netflix.

Featured Image Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty