Sylvester Stallone says his early clashes with Richard Gere reached a breaking point over chicken grease during a lunch break on a movie set.
In his new memoir, The Steps, published Sept. 29 by William Morrow, Stallone revisits the making of The Lords of Flatbush, the low-budget drama released in 1974 about teenagers in 1950s Brooklyn.
Stallone previously discussed the incident in a 2006 fan Q&A with Ain’t It Cool News.
Gere’s representative did not respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE, which published excerpts from Stallone’s account on Oct. 5.
Stallone Says the Audition Became Too Physical
The audition process also brought Stallone together with Robert De Niro. Stallone remembers enjoying their improvisations as the two tried to outtalk each other and worked through scenes without sticking to a script.
His experience with Gere was more contentious. Stallone writes that Gere grabbed his T-shirt hard enough for his fingernails to dig into his skin. He says he told Gere to back off, only for the same thing to happen on the second take.
Stallone then asked director Stephen Verona whether he could respond the way he would if someone handled him like that outside an audition. When Verona asked what he meant, Stallone told him, “I’d knock his teeth out.” Verona replied, “Please don’t,” according to the memoir.
A Cold Lunch Break Ended With Verona Stepping In
Days later, the actors were rehearsing around Coney Island in freezing weather when they climbed into a car to eat, according to the memoir account reported by The Independent. Stallone had a hot dog. Gere brought chicken on aluminum foil, covered with mustard and grease.
Stallone says he warned Gere that the food would drip on him, but Gere told him not to worry. When grease landed on his leg, Stallone writes, he elbowed Gere across the chest, got out of the car, walked around to the other side and pulled him from the back seat.
According to Stallone, Gere said he did not want the argument to become physical. “Too late,” Stallone replied, before Verona stepped between the actors. “One of us had to go,” Stallone writes.
Perry King Ultimately Played Gere’s Role
Stallone says Verona chose to keep him and dismiss Gere. The role of Chico Tyrell went to Perry King, who joined a cast that included Stallone as Stanley Rosiello, Henry Winkler as Butchey Weinstein and Paul Mace as Wimpy Murgalo.
De Niro also left the project, although his departure was separate from the dispute. According to Stallone’s account, reported by Entertainment Weekly, De Niro moved on to pursue another project.
Stallone Rejected Elton John’s Princess Diana Story
Another alleged confrontation appeared in Elton John’s 2019 memoir, Me. John recalled hosting a dinner party in the 1990s attended by Princess Diana, Gere and Stallone.
John wrote that Diana and Gere spent much of the evening talking near the fireplace. He believed Stallone had hoped to approach Diana himself and was unhappy about their rapport.
When the two actors were missing at dinnertime, John said his partner, David Furnish, found them in a corridor appearing ready to fight. The story resurfaced in PEOPLE‘s 2025 excerpt from Edward White’s book Dianaworld.
Stallone publicly rejected John’s account. Responding to a fan on Instagram after Me made headlines, he called it “Total BS” and “Total rubbish,” according to Us Weekly.
The Steps Revisits Stallone’s Early Career
The book follows the years between Stallone’s arrival in New York in 1969 and Rocky‘s Best Picture victory at the 1977 Academy Awards, while also revisiting his childhood.
Stallone also writes about the friendship he formed with Winkler. When he and his first wife, Sasha Czack, later arrived in Los Angeles, they had no place to stay. Winkler had already established himself on Happy Days.
As reported by PEOPLE, Stallone called his former costar, who directed the couple to a motel they could afford for a couple of nights. Winkler also shared memories of his own difficult start in Hollywood.
Stallone writes that he and Czack had barely $500 left. Following Winkler’s advice to look in the San Fernando Valley, they found a small rental in Encino for $300 a month.