Sylvester Stallone has an unexpected name in mind for a future Tulsa King villain, Andrew Garfield. Spending time with the actor left him imagining someone quite different from the imposing gangsters who usually threaten Dwight Manfredi.
Stallone, 80, discussed the idea with Marina Hyde on the November 5 episode of The Rest Is Entertainment. “I never thought we would hit it off, ever,” he said of Garfield, 43.
The Paramount+ series follows Dwight, a New York mobster who builds a criminal operation in Oklahoma after spending 25 years in prison. His associates include a dispensary owner, a young driver and a bar owner, rather than the familiar organization he left behind.
Garfield has not been announced as joining the cast. Stallone was describing someone he would like to recruit, without identifying an agreed role or a particular season.
Stallone Imagines a Villain With a Technological Advantage
Stallone pictured a more cerebral opponent, possibly one whose methods involved artificial intelligence. “Maybe it’s something that I have no idea how to stop,” he said. The suggestion came during a conversation about actors keeping their distance from one another and the possibilities that emerge when they spend time together.
Garfield has already explored the technology world in Artificial, Luca Guadagnino’s film in which he plays OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman. In a November 4 interview with GQ, he discussed making the movie and watching it with an audience at the New York Film Festival.
Garfield Asked Stallone About Meeting Roy Horn
The actors also appeared together on the October 2 edition of The Graham Norton Show, alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones. Garfield had a question about magician Roy Horn, whom he plays in the upcoming series Wild Things.
Stallone recalled visiting Horn’s apartment between shows after finishing Rocky II, in an exchange reported by Entertainment Weekly. When he asked for a bathroom, he was directed through a bedroom and discovered a white tiger.
Apple has confirmed that Jude Law plays Siegfried opposite Garfield’s Roy in the eight-episode production. Based on the podcast Wild Things: Siegfried & Roy, the series follows the entertainers’ personal and professional partnership. Both actors also serve as executive producers.
Garfield asked about Rocky, too. Stallone remembered being nearly 30 when the film launched his career and worrying that time was running out to establish himself as a leading man.
Stallone Says He Added Humor to Sheridan’s Darker Character
In the podcast conversation, Stallone also revisited Taylor Sheridan’s original conception of Dwight. He described a darker, more violent character and said he wanted to give the gangster a more complicated personal history, including a broken marriage, a daughter and a sense of betrayal.
Humor became another part of the revision. According to the interview transcript, Stallone said Sheridan gave him room to develop the role. He also said he writes the material for his own scenes, with head writer Terence Winter contributing alongside him. Sheridan remains an executive producer.
Stallone described the character in more personal terms in an October 14 interview published by Skydance. “What if Sylvester Stallone wasn’t an actor, he was a gangster?” he asked. He said Dwight shares his personality, including the ability to be funny before becoming dangerous when someone crosses him.
Season 5 Takes Dwight Back to New York
Paramount+ confirmed the fifth-season renewal in October, with filming beginning in New York on October 5. The production moved from Atlanta to match a storyline that returns Dwight to his old mafia territory.
Scarlet Rose Stallone, who plays Spencer, has been promoted to series regular. Erik Palladino, Glenn Fleshler, Anthony Skordi and Nickola Shreli are also joining in regular roles.
Season 4 began October 16 and releases new episodes on Fridays. Its fourth episode, “Square One,” arrived November 6. According to the streamer’s episode schedule, “Dinosaurs” follows on November 13.